Honeysuckles and Moonlight Shreds
by Eden's Epitaph
Summary: Nov28, Update! Choices one made long ago defines their future. Discover, through an everyday life, how actions of long ago forged and twisted the lives a teacher and his student, leading them to new options and their consequances. Story not suited for kid
1. Cherry Blossoms under a Weeping Sky

**Warnings: Honeysuckles and Moonlight Shreds is a story dealing with drugs, abuse, underage sex, adultery, mental instability and is meant to leave both bitter and sweet after-tastes. I'm aiming for realism. This story is also an Alternate Universe, set in modern Japan (which I know little of). There could, would and may not have inaccuracy, just be warned. Any flames will be regarded as mere matches to be sent back directly or used to lit fires in my backyards in parties to come. **

**_Side note: PLEASE, all reviewers should leave their e-mail address at least once. IT'S VERY IMPORTANT. Thank you_**

**Disclaimers: Rurouni Kenshin is property of Nubohiro Watsuki. **

**_Honeysuckles and Moonlight Shreds_**

_By Eden's Epitaph_

Prologue: _Cherry Blossoms under a Weeping Sky_

_Moonlight played silvery shades upon night darken teal color of the room's walls, casting shadows in a myriad of shapes and bluish-greys for the eye to observe in contemplative silence, paying much respect to the magnificence of night. Silky strands of midnight hair reflecting indigo were spread almost invisibly on the dark night-colored shade of the bed linens and summery sky hues of the bed-wide pillow. His hand, though trembling still, never seemed to tire of touching the velvet feel of the alabaster skin that glowed silvery under the bath of the moon. Her chest rose and fell, following a deep rhythm of relaxed breathing, lost in a sea of dreams he so wished to peer into. Her hands rested barely above her head, arm in a graceful arc, thick black lashes resting lovingly upon the delicate flesh of her rosy cheeks which he longed to graze with his burning lips. Only fear of waking her kept the man from succumbing into temptation, as sweet and lovable as it was. His finger grazed the smooth skin of her tender face, tracing the beautiful lines of her sleeping figure. _

_Amethyst pools stared lovingly at the sight of perfection sleeping with childish abandon on his dishevelled bed. Clothes rested discarded about the room, long forgotten in a hazed passion that had overthrown any thought of morality and promises shoved far away from a consciousness that begged hopelessly for some attention. It all just felt so right, too right to be as damn amiss as society saw it. To give into this sweet madness that had wrapped the both of them, leaving them breathless, completely overwhelmed, and it could not be wrong, no matter the odds._

_If sins were so powerfully wonderful, than he craved to be a perpetual sinner, his soul be forever damned to the darkness of hell, he would still have those magical moments of rapture and love engraved deeply in his mind and soul to cherish in an eternity of hellish pain. Yes, he would abide to the Devil's every wish only to remain by this lovely woman's side, should it be in torture. She had captured him and he was unwilling to leave, a liable prey, ready for the ultimate sacrifice of his soul for the sake of her, of what they had. _

_He sought no redemption, not an ounce of guilt or reminiscence, simply a feeling of fulfillment he knew only she could give. She had brought out the best of him, saw what was beautiful in his gloom, loved him without a question, gave him full understanding and, above all, her trust. It occurred to him that never before had he felt anything quite this strong. Willing to give and not expecting anything in return and surprised when he gave back. He once thought he was in love, elusive feeling cast in shadow by some illusion of reality, had married that woman who could never love him, that he could never love._

_He knew now, understood and saw as perfectly as if bathed in daylight, what had united two beings that, apparently hadn't and still wont, have anything in common but their mutual dread of loneliness, that had came along when their world had shattered under their powerless hands. It had took him ten years to realize how wrong he was, clinging to something that never even existed under a promise that had not even made any sense. This girl, latent by his side, lost in the loveliness of rest and reverie, was light. She was innocence and compassion, everything that his wife was not, everything that stirred his spirit toward life, everything he had unconsciously craved for so many years, so long he still had no idea when the need had birthed. _

_Absently, his hand drifted up her arm, caressing the soft flesh in a tender gesture, loving her with the pads of long fingers, watching intensely every subtle changes that would make her face lit up in the quiet obscurity of the bedroom. This beautiful woman was still so young, so inexperienced in life, yet experienced so much. Pain seemed to be a substantial part or her past and present as well as his and, still, she smiled through it all, head held high and confident. If any guilt should be felt, it was to bring her more worries, trouble and pain, to trap her between his past and his present and add yet more weight to her already heavy burden. And yet, he knew she would never crumble, he knew her to be strong, to be fiercely alive. But the eventuality that his love would be crushed hunted him, but the guilt he should feel seemed to have forgotten about him._

_When he had watched her, swathed in the euphoric state that their infatuation had so exquisitely created, flushed and vibrant under him, responding to his every hushed murmur, stirring his every senses awake, touching places that he thought could never be touched, he knew she was meant to be his, and he to be hers. She was never cold, always smiling, a whirlwind of fiery emotion that would light her ocean blue eyes to such a perfect glitter of life that would make his existence worth the ache and suffering, so far from the livid coal of his wife's eyes. She expressed herself in so many different ways, shown him what life really was and brought light to a life that used to be nothing but grey shades. _

_He smiled genuinely only when with her it seemed. The future no longer appeared to be that long, everlasting tunnel that he had feared so much. Happiness was his to take, and it was laid within this lovely girl that slumbered peacefully, laying next to him in all her exquisite glory. Love was no longer that tearing feeling inside that left him empty and ensnared, but a blissful ecstasy that enveloped his soul, coxing him towards a greater tomorrow wrapped in sun and smelling of newly hatched honeysuckles. _

_As a long finger played over her skin, gliding up and down the curves of her feminine attributes as if entranced by the soft glow of them, he began to wonder how it started. This madness, as beautiful as it was, had to have a beginning, everything had. He had not fallen into sin so easily, he remembered. Fighting want and lust and that overpowering need with all the might he could muster up, wishing it gone. It had tortured him, rendering him sleepless and agitated, angered him, maddened him, and it suddenly appeared to him that his struggle had been so vain. Kissing the hand he had gently taken hold of as his mind wandered back to that fateful rainy April day, on the skirts of the school campus, where he had first witnessed her beauty under the samurai's tree. _

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Early spring smelled of damp wood and blooming flowers, a fragrance that would turn all that was repulsive to exhilarating beauty. Nature reunited with life, buds about to burst, birds returning from their migratory voyages and a new school year on the wake. There, under a cherry tree, watching the downpour of a rainy April day was a young woman. Her umbrella rested peacefully on the wet cement of the sidewalk, the usually pale grey coloring of concrete darkening as it absorbed more and more of the celestial cry.

Sapphire jewels observed in quiet passiveness the large droplets beating down on the small pink flowers mercilessly, a few petals giving away under the weigh of the water. They only lived for a few days, those lovely blossoms, cheering the sad world of early spring, so depressingly cast in shadows by heavy dark clouds that loomed, almost permanently, over the citizen's heads. The samurai's blossom, a cultural symbol of the _way of the warrior_, bushido; the cherry blossom represented life in its purest essence. They flittered away after merely seeing but glimpse of the world in its golden light to give way into oblivion with barely an impression of the world.

School bag in hands, loaded with books, sheets and papers of all sorts, a heavy burden but she did not seem to care, the girl simply stood motionless under the rain. Uncaring of her uniform slowly drenching, sticking to her skin, the white fabric of her shirt turning translucent as the material got soaked, sending shivers down her spine, the girl watched and thought. All she could see was rain, falling endlessly, playing with the wind, almost dancing, and creating a natural music that would linger within her mind, relaxing, hypnotizing.

She exhaled a trembling breath, the clouds moving rapidly, blown away, induced into the wind's foreplay but always they remained the mass of darkness too large to simply disappear down the horizon, traced by the modern buildings and temples roofs of Kyoto. Her long ebony strands, heavily sopping, stuck to her face and the girl passed a delicate hand trying to push away the locks that covered her vision, wishing to see everything, to be enwrapped in this lovely visage of nature and absorb every image it created. Her blue eyes caught the sight of her watch, showing her that time was drawing short, but she ignored it, wishing to stay and watch some more.

Behind her, students were rushing through the school gates, laughing, shouting, chatting like the carefree youth they were. She was left unnoticed, someone who just stood there, like a fool, allowing the cold pour to soak her through. They were too eager to get into the building, away from the rain, to care for a lonely figure under a sakura tree. They resembled a parade of colorful umbrellas, those running students, which came in many shapes and just as many designs. Someone sprinted pass her, the rain-shielding object that was in their hands displayed an anime character, some sort of yellow rat surrounded by thunder bolts, quite the childish accessory. The girl's umbrella was a plain black one, conventional and quite useless now as it lay on the ground next to her, broken and reversed by the harsh wind.

In the distance, a bell rang, loudly bidding the children to there respective classrooms. But the soaked through black-haired girl decided to be deaf, just for a moment, choosing instead to stare, just a little longer, at the downpour, the wind and the delicate pink petals it dragged along, coloring the dull grey of rainy day. Footsteps resounded behind her and stopped. She felt eyes burn into her back, an intense gaze that seemed to observe every little details from her long and wet bare legs to her dripping mane that reached down to the small of her back. There was a vague voice, male, that spoke softly to her before the footsteps started to move forward again.

"You should get in, that you should." it said politely.

She shook her head in a negative. Just a little bit longer, whispered her mind. To feel the caress of water, cool and refreshing on her moist skin was good enough a reason for her to be late. To watch every drop join within the growing pool at her feet and see the movement splinter her reflection on the brown and grey water that acted as a mirror would, she was willing to suffer the consequences of tardiness. She signed, dropping her schoolbag on the drenched ground, sliding open the fastener, the sound, metallic and unnatural, a perjure to the gentle song of nature. The girl shoved her pale hand in between the folds and retrieved a blue silken ribbon, remains of a lost childhood.

Passing her palm over her wet black strands, smoothing them, trying to tame what was wild, and reassembling them in a high ponytail that cascaded down her shoulders, she knot indigo cloth. It felt heavy, darker than it was supposed to be, and most likely tangled, it would be a pain to care for when the day would draw to a close and she would be back to her new home. The girl allowed her eyes, deep sapphires lost in self brooding, to gaze over the rich brown barks of the tree that stood proudly over her and exhaled a breath that suited the ponder of her young mind.

"Silver drops of angel's grief, descending swiftly upon our shattered world, giving life to withering flowers, when all is silence. Who do you weep for, celestial beings, bound in perfection. Do you suffer from our misdeeds? Do you long for our liberation? In the end, we all sought salvation, but tangled in sins, we join in prayer, on hands and knees, hopeless and blinded by false conviction we beg your forgiveness. Living a lie, not believers but wishers, starving for something higher, bigger, right here, under the cherry trees..."

Slowly the drenched schoolgirl, a note-pad in hand, the paper undulated by water and rather inappropriate for writing, pivoted on the heels of her worn out brown shoes, leaving behind the umbrella, tortured by the elements. Walking, she scrabbled on the paper her earlier musing and crossed under the high gates of Kyoto High leaving a trail of wet footprints in her wake and earning herself a few curious stares as well as quiet snickers from fellow students.

She was a remarkable sight if there ever was one. Dripping wet, uniform messed, soaked through, rippled and worn black and yellow backpack, just as drenched as the rest of her. Those old brown leather shoes she wore squeaked with each step, announcing quite unceremoniously her arrival with a fare minute advance. Her socks stained by mud, blue skirt leaving a diminutive pool where she would stop, and her white shirt barely able to conceal as much as it should, almost see-through and water saturated, the girl walked down the empting corridors, seemingly without much of a care in the world.

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It was the usual first day cacophony. The young and eager students ranted about their vacation, loud displays of superficial life that many if not all abide to every once in a while. They were of all kinds, from the wealthy family of doctors to the poor employee's children, but all craved for the same freedom and dreamt to, one day, change the world. Such illusionary made them look so adorable even though most of them would never rise and most of those childhood wishes presumably to disappear at the wake of adulthood. Their dreams were bound to be crushed, devastated to better idolize money just as their parents did, corrupted by society, tied to the vicious cycle of consumerism, which they were already deeply confined into. But for a blissful moment, they were free, and that is what made all the beauty of youth.

Silence suddenly overtook the students as a red-haired young man walked into the classroom, an indulgent smile playing on his handsome face, giving him a look of gentle understanding.

"Good morning," he greeted politely.

The teacher let his gaze wander about the room, recognizing most of the young faces, before settling behind his desk and deposing the load of sheets he had carried along with his dirty-brown brief case. It was a repulsive item, worn and ready to surrender life at any moment. It remained a mystery to everyone, staff, teachers and students alike, why he still carried that thing around when it, in all probability, certainly could not induce anything remotely emotional. There was a few silent hushes from the students, most being from squealing hormonal girls, appreciative of the teacher's appearance. This made him smirk as he turned to the black board, a piece of chalk in between his long fingers.

"Please, sit down. I will be your Writing teacher for this year. My name is Himura Kenshin. You can call me Himura-_sensei_ or simply Himura, choose your own personal liking." he stated as he wrote his name in elegant curves. "Just no 'Ken-_san_', please." He warned eyeing a girl in the front row who just so happen to have whispered that name to her friend. She blushed beat-red and hid behind her hair.

Kenshin was the youngest teacher in Kyoto High and opinions about him were varied. It was obvious the young man had foreign blood, purple eyes and red hair certainly was no characteristic of an Asian. Discrimination was a persistent illness in the city of Temples. There was also a lot of mystery surrounding him, besides the fact that Kenshin rarely ever spoke of himself, there was a large cruciform scar slashing across his left cheek. Rumours whispered that the young man was a wanted criminal in a foreign country hiding in Japan under the guise of a teacher and that the marring of his face was one of many battle scars. Amazing what a bunch of young minds could come up with.

"This year, we'll be having an exchange student from Tokyo." He said turning then paused.

Kenshin stole a glance toward the door, spotted a face, and immediately motioned the unknown figure to make their entrance. The door slowly slid opened, almost hesitantly and a very wet and dishevelled girl crossed the frame, her shoes squeaking and her skirt dripping, leaving watery marks behind. Her gaze was downcast, shying away from the inquiring stares of the class who seemed more than interested but not necessarily in a kind way. Her hands held a yellow notepad that seemed heavily damaged by rain and time, the ink of the words scribbled over the drenched sheets slipping and smothered, deformed and nearly unreadable.

Kenshin took a short intake of breath in surprise as the girl raised her gaze toward him. Such deep, fiery and powerful blue eyes, so alike that of the midnight velvet coverlet that was the sky as the sun slept. She no longer appeared shy to him but uneasy. Though she seemed awfully pathetic, her small form soaked through and shivering, she held her head high and appeared confident. And for a moment everyone thought she was that kind of girl who always cried, clumsy and star-crossed. But when she spoke, her voice was firm, clear and sound.

"My umbrella broke." She explained, pointing at her wet uniform.

Her long ebony strands were restrained by an indigo ribbon, the hair around her delicate face had started to dry and had frizzled in some places. Her hand fidgeted lightly with the pad she was holding, if she felt intimidated, that was the only sign. She shifted the weigh of her backpack, the wet sound it made causing a few chuckles from the overly attentive assistance. She bit her lower lip shoving away the uncomfortable feeling of shyness that threatened to tighten her throat and managed to keep her assurance. She turned a resolute face toward the class, uneasiness only a shadowed memory of the moment and spoke with an unwavering voice, forgetting her particular state of soaked through.

"My name is Kamiya Kaoru. I come from Tokyo, it's a pleasure to meet you all," and then flashed them her best smile before bowing in respect.

"Welcome, Miss Kamiya. Please, take a seat," offered Kenshin.

Kaoru scanned the room, spotted a desk at her right, the second one closest to the door, and made her way to it, her brown worn-out shoes complaining with each step. All eyes were turned her way, watching as the water slowly dripped forming a puddle right under her seat, which she paid no attention to and simply settled at her desk, retrieving her study tools from her black and yellow bag and displaying them on the wooden surface. Kenshin shook his head, trying to push away the sight of the girl and desperately forcing his gaze away from her see-through white blouse. It seemed to be a losing battle though and he felt like slapping himself, confused and scared of his curious reaction. He then spoke in a vain attempt to clear his rampant thinking and consciousness.

"Um… Miss Kamiya, if you don't mind, perhaps you could pay a visit to the infirmary and recover some dry clothes, that you could."

"It won't be necessary, I'll be just fine, Mr. Himura," she said not moving her attention from the paper on which she had scrambled some unknown notes.

Murmurs and chuckles rumbled through students at the intentions of the strange new girl. School-life this year was certain to be very interesting. Along with the usual oddities that went along with every education establishment, this one very wet girl had became, in the lapse of a barely an hour, the center of every gossip that would perturb the student life for the coming weeks. Kenshin, still at his place by the board, coughed in a desperate attempt to regain his student's attention and began his usual first day basic explanation of his educational plan for the term. But it seemed that his eyes were constantly attracted to that girl sitting on the second seat of the first row. This class was going to be a very long and very frustrating one.

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**_The idea for Honeysuckles and Moonlight Shreds came with the title. One night, I was staying at my parent's place with nothing much to do but think and wonder. One thought lead to another and, out of the blue, those words appeared in my mind and I just had to note it. Back then I was still working on Within Souls – which is now discontinued – and did not really intend to start working on that new project. However, ideas just kept coming and, that night visiting my parents, I started to write the prologue with only a vague idea of what I intended this story to be about. My first few notes have nothing or little to do with the current plot line and I must admit that I struggled greatly with the first 5 or 7 chapters. It's only about a year ago that the plot of HMS started to clearly shape itself in my mind and became what you now know. This story has more then one theme and dealing with so many was, and still is, both a challenge and a real pleasure. I never had as much fun writing a story as I am having now and I hope everyone else is sharing, at least a little, my enthusiasm. _**

**_Thank you ever so much for taking the time to read and review._**

**_Eden's Epitaph_**

_Edited by Guardian Forever_


	2. Patchwork Bread and Field Detention

**Warnings: None.**

**__**

**_Honeysuckles and Moonlight Shred_**

_By Eden's Epitaph_

Chapter 1: _Patchwork Bread and Detention_

The day had been unusually dreadful. As predicted, the episode of Kaoru coming into class drenched from head to toe had fed the campus gossips, but she could not have envisaged it would last so long. They had ranted about the event all week, using every given chance to remind her just how strange they thought she was, and how foreign as well. Miss Puddle, they called her both referring to the incident as well as the color of her eyes. Of course, it was not openly said but she could easily tell. It did not last long, but she was used to being rejected because of her French heritage, although her mother looked more European than Kaoru did.

Everything that day seemed to go from bad to worse. First, she was late for her History class and got supplementary homework for the tardiness. Later she was cornered by a haughty girl and her pack of wanna-bes. Then, at lunch, she realized her aunts had forgotten to fix her food, and as preoccupied with the restaurant as they were, she could understand. However, forced return home and eat her own cooking at noon break had been quite a torture, leaving her stomach feeling like a bag of stones, needless to say that what she had prepared had tasted much like cement -- felt like it too.

Kaoru was brooding over her current situation, playing absent-mindedly with the yellow paper she held, sitting on the kitchen stool beside the island bench. Being fed her own culinary catastrophe, however, was not the most horrible thing. She glared at the paper as if willfully wishing it would disappear, screaming in fear. Kaoru managed to get herself a slip for Saturday detention, to her great demise. Her aunts would not be pleased by this in the slightest way. Not that she did not try to speak her way out of it, but it seemed that her teacher was deaf to all her arguments. Nothing seemed to justify a violent act, at least for Miss Hirazawa Mizushi.

Proof that adults really only saw and heard what they wanted to.

All of this trouble to prevent that poor little girl from being beaten up at the school gates. Of course, the bully got away with it, playing the victim when he really was the one doing the injuring in the first place. Damned be her chivalrous personality, it only got her into more trouble than it was worth. However, Kamiya Kaoru was not the kind of girl to simply look over innocent people being hurt or threatened. Her father's teaching played a great part in this, and for the sake of his beloved memory, she had to stand up for the weak, even though it meant getting detention on a Saturday morning.

The girl sighed as she recalled the afternoon's events, her angry scowl deepening if such a thing was even possible. She had yet again a very annoying day in a string of unpleasant weeks. The raven-haired girl had all the intentions of going back to the apartment as soon as she got out of school. However, fate had the wicked habit of reducing the best-laid plans to smithereens, especially at the wrong time. She happened to stumbled over a first year girl being pushed around by some over grown brainless ape. And of course, Kaoru could not let such a pathetic display of brute force left unpunished.

"Hey! Just what do you think you're doing?" she had yelled to the boy, startling him.

"None of you're business, Miss Puddle," retorted the said ape using the campus' favorite gibe.

"Leave her alone and take on someone your size for a change. Though I believe with your weight, no one would be large enough for the challenge!"

The boy was actually very fat, chubby cheeks, round body and large plump hands. Small eyes had stared at her, blazed in anger. He snorted, something that sounded more like a grunting pig than anything else, which suddenly changed her mental image of the boy. She chuckled openly as she pictured him with a twisting pink tail and a pig nose-- which seemed to already be one of his physical attributes. Seeing this, the previously ape now turned boar let go of his victim to face the girl, cracking his knuckles in a lame attempt to intimidate her but only causing further mockery from her part.

"I'll wipe that smile off your face!" swore the round boy before rushing toward her.

Kaoru had easily dodged the few punches that he threw her way. It got him furious and just as he closed his eyes to throw another more powerful punch she ducked and kicked him in a way only she knew the secret of. Poor piggy was sent into the stone wall behind him, eyes spinning within their small orbs. As she savored her victory with deep satisfaction, a smirk adorning her face, someone took hold of her shoulder. The young woman froze, all happiness chilled out of her system in a heart beat.

"You are in deep trouble, young lady," uttered her capturer.

Turning her head, she saw her history teacher, Hirazawa Mizushi, a tall woman with thick glasses that made her eyes look as if they were those of a fish instead of a human. Her tight bun seemed to pull her face into a perpetual scowl, which gave her more of an affinity to a dictator then a teacher. In all, that woman was the most feared among the school students. Earlier that day Kaoru had a brief encounter with her in class. The educator was just as hard as she looked, and the girl suspected a profound hatred toward youth in general in her severe fishy gaze.

"You'll be attending Saturday school tomorrow for your violent behavior, Miss Kamiya," declared the tyrannical teacher, handing her a yellow paper.

"But…"

"No buts, Miss Kamiya. Know that school grounds are no dojo, nor are they a fighting field. If you wish for some violent intercourse, do it where such things are permitted."

"But Mrs. Hirazawa, he…" but of course, the teacher would not hear any of her excuses, good or not.

"If you fail to be present tomorrow, you'll be in more trouble than you already are in. Make you parent sign this notice."

"What a crappy week…" cursed Kaoru staring out the kitchen window.

Forced detention, having to make her aunts sign the note and a pile of extra homework. What else could possibly go wrong? The pale blue curtains danced with the spring breeze that breathed through the opened window, the sun's rays giving a golden hew to the counter. Sitting on her stool, she noticed the rumbling of her stomach, telling her quite loudly that a meal would be highly appreciated. Sighing, Kaoru, still clad in her blue skirt and white blouse, jumped off her perch and padded toward the old, yellowish refrigerator.

Yanking the door open, she shoved her head inside, feeling the cool air hit her flesh instantly as her gaze roamed for possible eatables -- preferably something that did not required any cooking. She drummed her fingers on the side of the door while shoving aside jars, pots and containers, trying to find something that would suit her stomach. Finally, Kaoru spotted a block of cheese that seemed to scream for attention beside the butter container. Wagging her head, she tried to find any sort of possible collation that could be created out of cheese and while doing so, her gaze fell upon a loaf of bread and an idea popped out. She smiled large and wide, almost devilishly.

Retrieving the needed ingredients -- namely cheese, bread and butter -- and settling them all on the kitchen island, she hummed to herself, almost forgetting the yellow paper and its promise of a boring Saturday morning. She was opening the bread bag when the phone rang loud and shrill, an annoying ring that tugged at her nerves. How she hated phones! Though they were a very useful device for communication their tonality had an uncanny resemblance to the sound a tortured cat would make. Grumbling some wisely chosen curses, she picked up the receiver muttering an irritated hello.

"Maa, aren't we a bit frustrated today, Kaoru," mocked a cheerful voice from the other side of the line.

"Misao?" exclaimed the once angry girl.

"The one and only! How're doin'?"

"I've seen better days…" Kaoru sighed, returning her attention to her previous task.

"Really? How was your first few weeks there? Any new friends or maybe a good lookin' guy in sight?" Misao's constant questioning left no room to answer, causing the azure-eyed girl to giggle.

"Well," she thought aloud. "I got wet before first class and entered the homeroom drenched, suffered teasing since then, got extra homework for History and I also got detention today…" she said, her tone humorously sarcastic, "I guess it was ok."

"Drenched? How did you manage to go to class drippin' wet?"

"It was raining, and windy, and my umbrella, you know that old black thing I used to smack Sou-chan's head with, it broke."

"No wonder, just how many times did you hit the poor guy with that thin'?" asked the hyperactive girl a smile in her voice.

"I don't know… Enough times to traumatize him of umbrellas. He can't look at one without trembling like a scared cat…" humored Kaoru while spreading the hard, cold butter on a fresh piece bread.

"Yeah…" agreed her interlocutor.

"So, anyway, I earned myself quite a reputation with the whole soaked episode."

"I can imagine," laughed Misao. "How's the teachers?"

"Well, my history teacher must have been a fish dictator in one of her previous lives, but the rest look just fine. My Writing teacher's already given us an assignment, some kind of self-explaining composition, and I've got some homework for Physics and Chemistry and you already know about History. I'd say it's a typical school just like every school you've seen," she explained as she sliced the block of cheese in uneven strips. "What about you? Anything knew?"

"Same teachers, same people, nothin' interesting… um. Oh yeah, Soujiro got into the Kendo club. I don't get why he waited for you to go before gettin' in…"

"That's so typically Sou-chan,"

'**_TCHLACK_**'!

"What was that?"

"Nothing, just the knife hitting the counter. I'm making patchwork bread."

"Don't scare me like that!"

"Sorry…" Kaoru sheepishly apologized.

"You still haven't told me about your new friends!"

"Misao, I went into my first class dripping and you still assume I got myself some friends to talk about?"

"You've got a good point but… Com'on! I'm sure soon everyone will forget about it and you'll get tones of new friends to hang with and boys ready to die for your beautiful eyes!" cheered the girl on the other side of the phone line.

"Sure, Misao," she sarcastically agreed with her friend.

"Say what you want, I'm sure… no, I know that's what'll happen. I know they said you should be discreet and…," Misao heard Kaoru sigh and added, slightly exasperated. "I know it's not as it was here and lotsa thin's've changed but… they can't return to what they used to be either. You gotta swallow or spit it and get over it so you can ram into life the way you used to!"

"Thanks Misao, I'll do my best," the sound of a keys being shoved into the door's lock made Kaoru turn her head in that direction, dread creeping into her indigo irises. "Look, my aunts are back. I've gotta go now. I'll call you tomorrow ok?"

"Sure, but don't forget what I said!"

"Yeah, bye."

Kaoru's blue eyes turned anxious. She was apprehensive about whatever her aunts would say when they would notice the yellow paper that rested almost too innocently on the counter. Of course, they had heard of her first day catastrophe by the intermediate of the principal, a nice man but a little too centered on dressing ethic issues. She had earned herself quite an intense argument with her guardians on the matter. They informed her, rather vehemently, of the proper way of entering class and the importance of following rules and, of course, being well dressed. Brief, the usual parent talk that she was not inclined to hear right now, if she would ever be.

The door was thrown open and a heavily charged woman walked in. Her face always appeared to be a mask of cheerfulness, forever sporting a smile, she was never defeated and it seemed to exasperate the girl. Not that Kaoru hated happy people, just that recently her lips rarely curved upward. Leaving home, changing school and city and the particular circumstances that led to the current situation sucked all of her optimism for the months to come.

"Hello dear," greeted the woman when she noticed her niece standing in the kitchen, a very large knife in hand. "What are you doing?"

"Um... patchwork bread," said the girl drooping the cutting tool in the sink.

The woman disposed of her many bags on the counter, barely missing squashing Kaoru's attempt to the said meal. The hard butter had torn through half of the fresh bread when the teenager tried to spread it over the soft texture. Her aunt eyed the slices of cheese, arching an eyebrow questionably and then noticed the yellow paper that stuck out under the load of the grocery's brown paper bags. Yanking it out, she started reading all the while talking.

"Never heard of such a meal..."

"Oh, it's just bread and cheese, Misao said it looked like patchwork and the name stayed," she explained lamely, dreading the woman's reaction that would soon come.

"Detention? What's this all about Kaoru? Was it raining again today?" She sounded aloof, but her stare was not as careless.

"... No," it was not going to be easy, at least her other aunt was not there, though whether it was a good or a bad thing had yet to be proven.

"What happened?" she asked, eyes locked on her young protégé's facial expression.

"Well..." started Kaoru, nervously shifting her weigh from one foot to the other. "There was this girl being bullied and I kinda knocked the pig out..."

"In clear words, you got caught fighting..." the woman said one hand resting on her hip to accentuate her reprimanding speech with body language. "Kaoru, how many times have we told you not to solve problems through violence?"

"But, Aunt Sae, I tried but..."

"Kaoru, I don't want to know how it happened. You see where these things lead you! It was the same when you were in Tokyo. I don't understand why your father..."

"Leave my father out of this!" she exclaimed furiously. "You don't understand. I just wanted to help."

And with that she stormed out of the kitchen, slamming forcefully her bedroom's door to emphasize her anger. Sae only watched her, a sad look on her face that otherwise would only show cheerfulness. Sighing, the woman turned to her grocery, wondering how to handle such situation. She and her sister were just not used to children, especially teenagers. When her younger sister had married that martial artist from Tokyo, Sae was delighted. Koshijiro was a wonderful man, idealistic and full of energy. They all loved him very much and it broke their heart when, not so long ago, he was brutally taken away.

Poor Kaoru was really close to her father. Ame, Kaoru's mother, was a very fragile woman and was often ill. She succumbed to pneumonia when her daughter was five years old. Although Koshijiro's line of work kept him far from home for weeks, if not months, the family of two was bound strong. It was almost surprising, given that they rarely seen each other. However their relationship, though peculiar, was in a way privileged. Koshijiro's death had been a shock, and Kaoru was the most deeply affected by it.

Sae and her twin sister Tae loved the girl dearly, being their only niece; she was a princess to them. Kaoru had always been a very energetic girl, cheerful and lively, a cute kid. She was brilliant too. A real genius when it came to poetry and writing in general. She was gifted, talented and a very sweet girl. But everything changed when the accident came. The blue-eyed whirlwind was slowly changing, no longer as vibrant as she used to be. Kaoru had lost that fire that would make her eyes so bright, her attitude more defiant, and reacted like a volcano ready to burst at every moment. The twins were worried about her, and with good reasons. Still, they had no idea as to how to help their beloved niece.

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Once again, Kenshin came home to an empty house. Leaving his keys on the table, the metallic clinking like tiny bells, their sounds rebounding on the walls, no one to welcome him. Everything was neatly in place where it belonged, where he had carefully placed it. Taking his shoes off, sitting on a chair, he studied his surrounding. The walls painted in light colors, the furniture that filled an otherwise devoid space, the shelves crawling under the mass of books they supported. He shoved his hand through his thick red locks, trying to clear his thoughts, his briefcase resting peacefully beside him.

Kenshin wondered when the last time Tomoe greeted him at home was. Everything happened so fast. Soon after the marriage, it all collapsed, almost literally. It was strange sometimes how life could be. One moment ready to spend the rest of your life with the same person and the next feeling trapped, caged in some kind of hand made hell, lost, your heart full of loathing, wishing to turn back time. Though even back then he wished the times could be changed. Friends knew and warned them, but lost in their own elusive world, they kept running, starving for solutions and consolation. If only he had listened, he would not feel so miserable now. The truth was Himura Kenshin was a damn fool.

Not a year after the marriage, it was clear that they had nothing in common when it came to love and loving. Him, the ever smiling young student teacher, she, the glacial stewardess, they were from completely opposite worlds. He stole a glance toward the clock ticking on the wall, counting the hours and whispering the seconds with the ever present sound of the long red needle running its circular course, just as he was. She would be home soon, might as well make some use of his spare time to prepare something to eat.

Stepping into the kitchen, he opened the refrigerator, observing the possibilities and decided on something simple and fast. Rice and fried fish, add to the dish some frozen vegetables and he would get an easy and, hopefully, tasty meal. He drew a casserole pot from a cupboard and poured some water in before he placed on the stove to boil. Bored, Kenshin watched the bubbles form and pop as they reached the surface, musing over the short span of a bubble's life. After adding some butter and salt to the heating water, he turned to the line of frying pans that hung, suspended above the counter in the middle of the kitchen.

It seemed that those simple household chores, cooking, cleaning and such, were the only thing keeping his mind from pitiful meditation on lost times and stupid decisions. However, as he placed the fish on the pan, he realized that even those little things that brought him some kind of comfort no longer seemed to fill their second function. Everything he did reminded him that life was not as it should be, not as he planed, not as he even remotely wanted it to be. The hopes of a young mind, which was ready to take the world on, no longer subsisted, drugged before it was confined within something that was so cliché, everyone could tell. It occurred to him how much he despised the way his life had turned out. How could he have been so… so… stupid?

Kenshin had just finished cooking the meal when the door opened. He recognized her footsteps. They were precise, calculated, slow and so very depressing. Her face appeared in the doorframe of the kitchen. Her long dark hairs framed her cold face, her coal eyes as emotionless as ever when they noticed him. Nodding her head, she acknowledged his presence.

"I'll be home for only a couple of days," she said stoically.

Mustering enough courage to smile he turned to say. "The food's ready, just serve yourself, the vegetables are in the microwave."

Their conversation throughout dinner was simple and short, saying only what needed to be said. The teacher sometimes thought that even arguing would be so much more pleasurable than this. They ate in silence, the clinking of their utensils their only companion, their eyes never meeting. How long would they avoid each other before the inevitable crumple of their faux-play? Had it not lasted long enough? The phone rang and the woman's black eyes lifted off her plate to stare at the red-headed. He sighed and got up, taking the receiver, slightly annoyed.

"Kenshin!" said a gruff, worried voice.

"Yes?"

"Kenshin, please come over. The brat's missing again!" the voice was not only apprehensive; it was on the verge of panic.

"Calm down Sano. I'm on my way," assured the teacher before hanging up.

"Yahiko did it again?" Tomoe asked, but her tone was more akin to an affirmation than a question.

"I don't know when I'll be back. You mind washing the dishes?"

She answered with a curt shake of her head and Kenshin was gone swiftly, keys in hand and ready for yet another long night. Was there anything normal in his life?

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The sight to which Kenshin was greeted with when he crossed the doorframe of he's best friend's disheveled apartment was a sadly amusing one. The tall, brown-eyed young man was pacing the living room that served as a dinning room as well, a worried frown on his otherwise boyish face. Seeing the redhead enter, he leaped at him seizing his shirt in tight, large fists, shaking him even, panic overtaking him, not able to further suppress his dread. The words came out of his mouth faster than a normal human could understand.

"That damn brat. I swear when I get my hands on him! Kenshin you gotta help me!" the glint in his eyes was so close to insanity, it almost scared the helpless teacher.

"Sano, calm down. Yahiko can't be too far. We'll find him soon enough," he tried to sooth his friend, his voice as calm and even as possible through the shaking of the tall brunette.

"I'm sorry… it's just that," Sanosuke sighed, letting his friend go, hands shaking.

"Let's think this through. Where was the place he ran to last time?"

"He went… back to the house… but I don't think he'll be there this time."

The two stayed silent, the atmosphere heavy around them and not from the unusually warm weather, but from the weight of anxiety. Yahiko had that unnerving habit to run away at least once a month. Quite an unsettling habit for his short-tempered guardian who, although he pretended not to care, was very conscious of his charge. Although the boy would never wander too far off and most of the time could be found easily, the fright the two men would get each time was enough to shorten their life spans a few years, if not, at least be the cause premature white hair.

Lost in thought, Kenshin's soft lavender gaze fell upon a framed picture that rested peacefully on the television shelf. In the prettily decorated frame was a photograph of a young, black haired woman whose smile shone brightly on the frosted image, her brown eyes, much like those of Sanosuke, lively and intelligent though provocative. Observing her, long silken black hair done in a long braid, an idea stroked his mind.

"Sano, I think I might know where he is."

Saying so, he took hold of the wrist of the giant man -- compared to Kenshin's petit frame that is -- and literally dragged his confused friend down the hall to his awaiting car. Without so much as a word of explanation, the young teacher got into the drivers side, shoved the key into the ignition and drove off at a speed that caused even the daring Sanosuke to take hold of the door, a fearful expression on his paling face. Gripping his seat belt, he glared at the driver who steered madly, face set in determination, his destination still unknown to his alarmed companion.

"Where're you goin'?" Sanosuke finally managed to ask after the shock and fear.

"The cemetery," was the redhead's sole clue, but it explained everything.

It took some time for the passenger to fully register the words but as soon as it dawned in his mind, a grin appeared on his face. Why had he not thought of it? Of course, the boy would be there. And then the smile was wiped off his face as suddenly as it came, thinking that Yahiko could have, at least, told him of his whereabouts instead of leaving him to his brooding and worry.

"Faster Kenshin, I wanna get there before he changes his mind and tries to run where we won't be able to find him."

The rest of the ride to the graveyard was spent in silence, punctuated by the purring of the engine, the humming of the radio and the low muttering of Sanosuke's curses. Kenshin, purple eyes trained on the dark road, would time to time steal a glance at his long time friend, face contorted in anger, eyes ablaze as if the chocolate color of his irises would suddenly find a way to produce fire, ready to burn the infuriating child.

It had been eight years now that the boy lived with the carefree -- and free loading -- box instructor -- who also happened to be a part-time bouncer in some obscure bar. Ever since Yahiko's mother past away in the fire that consumed his childhood home, along with everything that a child his age could hold dear, him and Sano have been together. Wild in nature, Yahiko had a lot of trouble in school. He kept pulling pranks and calling his teachers names in front of the class, getting into detention, fighting over everything and nothing. Insubordinate, his mind elsewhere most of the time, always an insult ready on his sharp tongue, unruly and exasperating, the spiky headed youth was more trouble than one would think him worth. But none could say that they truly hated him.

Sighing, Kenshin pulled the car up by the cemetery gates. Most people feared graves, scared of death and its complete mystery to human-kind. Sanosuke was one of those who could simply not see a cemetery without getting that cold sweat of pure fear down his spine, making him shiver inside as well as outside. The redhead, though, was very much at ease, feeling some kind of sick comfort to the gloomy surrounding of a graveyard, finding it, in a strange way, quite a relaxing place. Maybe it was because of a past they never spoke of or that feeling of lost and helplessness that ripped at his heart, or maybe it was simply because, unlike most, he just did not fear death. Whatever the reason was, he did not dislike the fields of the dead.

Kenshin marched ahead of the tall, frightened man, stepping in between the gravestones, not even sparing them a look while the terrified Sano glared at the epitaphs with wide brown eyes. Their walk was not long and they soon found just what they were here to get. In between the dreadful gray stones, reminders of those who had been loved and left for the eternal sleep, knees on the soft green grass, his small back turned to them, was Yahiko. Hearing their foretelling footsteps, the boy turned his young head around, eyes glazed, apparently bloodshot and traces of tears adorned his rosy cheeks. The fire that was naturally encaged in those deep and intelligent orbs of mahogany was gone, leaving no hint of his famed forceful spirit. Only sorrow and loneliness transpired, killing the anger that had whelmed within the pair. Slowly, as if reluctant, Yahiko stood up, staring at them with his grieving eyes, knowing perfectly well what awaited him for his misdeed and somehow already accepting it. His face was partly hidden by the shadow that loomed, leaving only a half of it to their viewing.

"Go ahead and say whatever you want, Sanosuke. I don't care," his voice was devoid of emotion as he fully turned to them, the part of his face that had been hidden catching light.

The duo caught their breath upon the sight of the nasty and most-likely stinging black, blue and purple bruise covering most of Yahiko's left eye. His lower lip was stained with crusted blood that had flowed out of a split, another bruise swelling the corner of his mouth. The reprimanding words that had formed in Sano's mind were lost, long forgotten by the disturbing discovery of his ward's beaten face. Crouching down, the man gently lifted the boy's chin as to further investigate the injuries. Those who did not know him would have thought the sight disturbing. An oversized, spiky-headed man with his ever present red bandana, kneeling in front of a boy with so much care, love and gentleness in his usually mischievous chocolate eyes.

The truth was, Sagara Sanosuke loved his nephew with all of his heart. The tall man simply did not know how to show it most of the time. When feelings were involved, he was clumsy, always ending up feeling dumb. Usually, he would rather express himself through teasing and jokes. However, whenever the boy showed hurt of any kind, Sano, almost instinctively, forgot what rudeness was and became this odd image of parental care.

"Who did this to you?" he asked, his voice uncharacteristically warm.

"It doesn't matter…" whispered the child, eyes staring at the ground as if it was the most interesting thing in the world.

"To me it does, kid."

"It won't change anything if you know."

"Maybe, but at least you won't be keeping it for yourself," explained Kenshin who had been silent until then.

But Yahiko stayed stubbornly quiet, avoiding any eye contact and keeping his eyes on his worn, almost too small, red and black running shoes. That would have been the moment when Sanosuke's impatience would have kicked in, but he remained amazingly calm. He stood up and put his large hand to the back of his wards' shoulders, silently showing him that it was time to leave. Obediently, to Kenshin's great surprise, Yahiko started to walk, only taking a moment to steal a glace at the grave behind them and strolled to the waiting car. They drove back to the disordered apartment in heavy silence. The kid on the back seat stared absent-mindedly at the rushing scenery, watching the electric wires stretched like long, black snakes undulating up and down high on the poles. Funny how such things could be so interesting when otherwise one would believe it deprived of any interest.

The moon shone in a thin crescent, only a shard of what it really was in a lonesome, polluted sky. Once home, Yahiko went directly to his room without saying a word, closed the door and left the adults to their wonderings. There were many questions in their worried minds and no answer to clear their unease.

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Much to Kaoru's displeasure Saturday was sickeningly bright and beautiful. The birds were chirping their joy to the rising sun while she unwillingly prepared herself for, as she had labeled it, the unfair torture. Sitting on the kitchen table, a spoon in hand, wiggling it like a child would and playing with her cereal that started to look more like the rest of an upset stomach than food, the raven-haired girl tried to accept her fate. She felt like a death-row prisoner about to be lead to her sentence, she glanced at the rooster clock hung on the wall opposite from her and sighed deeply. It was early, too early for a Saturday morning, and it caused her already brooding mood to become even more awful. Should she get angrier, the walls would tremble under the waves of negative energy that would come out of her. At least, that was what her aunt Sae told her moments ago, smiling so annoyingly brightly that Kaoru thought she was mocking her.

"Come on, Kaoru. You'll have to go now if you don't want to be late," announced Tae, dully as she expertly flipped a pancake.

"That's precisely what I want…" mumbled the girl under her voice.

But of course, one glace of the hardening gaze of her aunts pushed her into motion. Kaoru slid off her chair, her blue eyes dark and moody, and her smile long since gone along with the hope of a morning of laziness. Her stomping feet echoed through the small apartment and produced a wince out of the twins. They feared that their niece would wake the whole building with her violent steps. Kaoru slammed the stairway door forcefully, earning herself an angry reprimanding from Tae, hushed by the cause of her yells. Her words, thought, fell onto deaf ears when the girl stormed down the stairs and out into the fresh morning air.

Her walk to school was uneventful. The same landscape, the hateful blue sky that seemed to laugh at her demise, the same smiling passersby and shops. All that cheerfulness made her sick, although she would be the first one to grin like an idiot on days such as this. Kaoru was pondering over any possible way out of her condemnation as she crossed the gates not really realizing she did and entered the school that only promised boredom and further annoyance to the infuriated teenager.

When she finally reached the detention class she noticed, much to her surprise, that no one was there. No other students, not even a teacher. Only an empty room, desks and chairs. Rising an eyebrow, she studied the place, wondering if she simply misread the classroom number, or maybe they were hiding or her eyes were playing tricks on her. But no. She was at the right place, a glance at her Moogle watch told her that she was at the right time, and as far as she could remember, it was Saturday. Unless there was some kind of decree that was voted over the night that switched Saturday to Sunday. In such a case, Kaoru would be leaping with joy.

"What's with that damn school?" she mumbled heatedly stomping her foot on the hard floor.

"Excuse my tardiness but… Miss Kamiya?"

The girl jumped slightly, startled by the sound of her name, and whirled around, a hand over her rapidly racing heart, her breathing just barely on edge and stared into a captivating set of soft lavender eyes that watched her incredulously. Indigo blue widened, realizing how close she was to the yet to be named face and took a few steps backward so she could visualize the whole. Scarlet bangs, a surprised expression on a tired face, Kaoru recognized her writing teacher Himura Kenshin. Still clutching her chest, she tried to recover from her momentary fright when her eyes blazed in anger and she burst.

"What's with sneaking on your students?" she demanded quite heatedly.

"I'm sorry if I startled you, Miss Kamiya. But I was just as surprised as you were to find you here, that I was," explained the teacher.

Kaoru shook her head and turned her back to the small man and made her way to a seat by the window. Kenshin did so as well, claiming the teacher's desk and retrieved a poetry book out of his old brown briefcase.

"Why are you here?" he asked once settled.

"Got in trouble for protecting someone…" she grumbled.

"Protecting?" now he was confused.

"Yeah, well. It seems that Mrs. Hirazawa is deaf to any explanation when she catches someone fighting, even if it's for a good reason."

"Ah… That woman is a bit too strict. But, you must understand that fighting is not the best way out of a conflict, that it is not," explained the redhead.

"So I've been told," was the girl's flat reply.

Silence filled the room as the occupants turned to their respective work. Kaoru had brought some of her work thinking that if she was forced to spend the morning in school, she might as well use that time to her advantage. At least, she would get rid of her extra homework and have the rest of her weekend to do nothing as most teenagers did. Time passed and with it, the sound of flipped pages and scratching pencil until both grew restless. Being locked indoors on such a beautiful day was unsettling for both teacher and student being the active people they were. Sitting around was more of a torture than Kaoru's pride would allow her to admit.

Bored, Kaoru started to tap her foot, setting a beat, wishing time to pass faster. Why must seconds feel like eternity when one was bored and, on the contrary, flow so fast when one was having fun? Kenshin looked up, having heard the girl's impatient tapping, and found her gazing wistfully out the window. Up in the sky, white cotton-like clouds took shapes that only the imagination could discern. Birds flew freely around the yard, singing and playing carelessly in the branches of the trees that were planted near the window. He took a quick glance at the clock above the black board and realized that, at this rate, the two of them would most likely die of boredom.

"Um… Miss Kamiya…" he uttered getting the girl's attention. "I believe that, just like me, you are getting a bit uncomfortable sitting here and I was wondering… Maybe we could take this detention elsewhere…" he suggested once she had turned her head his direction.

"What do you mean?" she inquired, raising one perfect black eyebrow.

"Well," he said collecting his book and papers, "detention means that a teacher has to supervise the chastised student but it is not said clearly that it must be held indoors, that it is not," he explained with a bright smile on his lips.

It seemed that the teacher's sudden happy mood was quite contagious because soon, Kaoru was returning the smile and picking up her stuff, shoving it into her bag, ready to head wherever Kenshin's mind was thinking of. The two left the room and she followed the redhead out of the building. They walked leisurely, the breeze playing with black and crimson tendrils of soft hair. The weather was incredibly warm for such an early spring day. The sun bathed the clean green grass in golden light, acting like a spot light for the dancing vegetation. The young teacher lead his student to a small field near the basketball court where there stood a small assembly of trees, the new and fresh leafs swaying along with the wind.

Kenshin's violet eyes followed two playful birds as they waltzed in the clear blue sky and smiled softly at the marvels of nature. His young companion took a deep breath, enjoying the fragrance of the wild flowers that grew freely around them. A small giggle escaped her lips and she sat herself on the ground, crossing her legs and staring up at the white puffy clouds, trying to discern a face or a shape of any kind to amuse her mind with. Following her lead, the long-haired teacher sat down, a hand petting the soft blades of new grass. He remembered when he enjoyed such an outing, before everything collapsed. The momentary memory caused a frown to pass over his face and when he turned to Kaoru, she had a worried expression on her lovely face.

"What's wrong Mr. Himura?" she asked genuinely concerned.

"It's nothing Miss. Kamiya… really," he said forcing a smile to his features.

It was her turn to scowl but she simply looked away, judging that to peer into her teacher's mind was improper. But she could not shove a nagging feeling of concern away and gathered her legs and rested her chin on her knees, fingers playing absent mindedly with her white socks. Her indigo irises scanned their peaceful surrounding with awe. She had not suspected such a beautiful field to be hidden right behind her school. Kyoto was very different from Tokyo she decided. It was a lovely city, temples and shrines every street corner lending the ancient Japanese capital a lovely mix of modern and historical architecture that she could not help but find attractive.

Her grin soon returned when Kaoru cast her gaze upward and caught sight of a lovely cloud shaped like a sea turtle. It seemed to swim smoothly on its airy, vaporous water, slowly morphing and turning into a giant bowl of ice cream. Kenshin, curious at her childish smile, followed her gaze and found the imaginary icy treat, but did not quite observed the same image. In his mind, the mold of white was a mountain from which a cascade fell to the vastness of the heavens.

"What do you see up there?" he inquired.

"Um…" she narrowed her eyes as the shape stretched into something new. "There," she said tilting her head to her right and pointing to the once ice cream bowl, "I see a bird ready to take off…" she uttered dreamingly.

"Ah?" he angled his head the way she had, trying to see that white cloudy bird and smiled when the silhouette turned into exactly what she had described. "You see that cloud over there? It looks like a whale, that it does…"

"Un…" she acknowledged, nodding her head and hugging her legs to her chest.

She sighed, a light exhale of a breath, not weary but appreciative. How long had it been since she last felt so peaceful? The gentle wind caressed her slightly colored cheeks as her sparkling blue eyes stared at the morsels of nature modern life had yet to perturb. Kenshin did not fail to notice the contentment on her face. Such a beautifully graceful face adorned with bottomless twin blue ponds, full of life with barely a trace a bitterness lingering in the infinite softness of their depth.

Was this the same girl who had came to his class soaking wet, who's face had shown no concern to her obviously uncomfortable state and stood with resolve, strength and confidence? Had he not seen a tinge of loss in her eyes before she turned to the class that day? He was now sitting next to her, watching her face set into a peaceful expression of ease, her long midnight strands, bound by a lovely indigo ribbon, flying along with the gusts of gentle wind, caressing her face. Unsuspected, as if coming out of nowhere, he felt jealous of those inky tendrils, wishing it could be his fingers touching her face instead.

The teacher shook his head violently, those sinful thoughts had to go, it was not proper. To think of trailing his fingertips upon the delicate peach colored skin of Kaoru's face had to be wrong. He was an educator, she was his student, and thinking of her in any other way was just… not right. Worst, he was a married man. Married to an ice cold woman who could never love him, a woman with cold beauty, never smiling, un-talkative… Was there no way out of this?

Ignorant of the turmoil in which her teacher resided, Kaoru reached for her school bag, retrieving her beloved yellow note pad and a random pencil. The place and the mood was perfect for poetry, she thought. Placing her writing tools over her now folded legs, she stared a moment at the sky and the not so far away trees and her pink lips curled upward with the rise of inspiration. The muses of nature were with her at that moment, breathing life to her boiling imagination and her pencil soon was scribing wildly on the sun colored paper. Curious, Kenshin tried to steal a peek over her shoulder, wondering with much interest just what the girl was doing. He soon found out as the words talked for themselves, so very beautifully flowing that he didn't even felt like he was reading at all.

_Whispering wind, _

_Speaks words into my soul_

_Something beautifully bold_

_Feeling of elation as I breathe in_

_Unusually ecstatic_

_As I lay on green grass_

_Joy is now for me to grasp_

_No longer surrounded in gray_

_Seeing the carefree fairy play_

_Making the nature dance_

_Losing me in deep trance_

_Forgetting my dismay _

She then stopped, feeling an intense gaze over her shoulder. She froze, feeling dread icily flow through her veins and slowly turned her eyes to the direction of her teacher who was so caught up in his reading that he did not even noticed she had ceased to write.

"It's very good…" he whispered, not really realizing he spoke the words out loud.

"You… You think so?"

Blinking, Kenshin looked up from her lap where the sheet had been set and stared into her bright blue eyes, "No, it's beautiful," he finally confessed.

The smile that spread over her face was exquisite, as if his compliment to her writing was the first she ever had, and she uttered with a shy voice,

"Thank you, Mr. Himura."

"Kenshin," at her confused expression he added. "Please, call me Kenshin when we are not in class…"

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**_There was less to correct in this chapter then I first thought. A few things about Kenshin's relationship with Tomoe, it's barely noticeable but it contradicted with the turn the story was taking. When I wrote this, I thought that Tomoe hated Kenshin, but now, with the ideas that were developed later, she simply does not love him, and Kenshin IS aware of that. I also rearranged the interaction between Kenshin and Kaoru to better fit the slow development. In all, I'm much more pleased with this chapter then I used to. However, I still think it is a long one. It's, unfortunately, a necessary evil._**

****

**_Eden's Epitaph_**

_Edited by Guardian Forever_


	3. From Weird Music to Compassion

**Warnings: None.**

**__**

**_Honeysuckles and Moonlight Shreds_**

_By Eden's Epitaph_

Chapter Two: _From Weird Music to Compassion_

Sunday was usually a depressing day for Kamiya Kaoru. Nothing interesting ever happened on Sundays. It was as boring as watching a fingernail grow. Generally, back at Tokyo that is, she would spend those days of utter boredom with Misao and Soujiro pouring over their strange collection of music that most people their age would not even think of listening to. Between games soundtracks, old rock, J-pop and last century composers, they would plan the next Saturday, wishing the first day of the week gone swiftly. Today, though, the blue-eyed girl was alone, her dear friends far away and most likely doing more pleasant things than sitting around in their room trying to figure out just what to do with too much spare time and no one the spend it with.

Pacing the floor, sifting through a few CD she had in hand, Kaoru tried to choose something that would be blatantly clashing with her mood. In simple words, she was brooding and wished to hear some insanity before she would fall into lunacy herself. She tossed her Arc-en-Ciel compact disc on her messed up bed -- she had not cared to make it when she woke up feeling utterly weary of such things -- the young woman was just not in the mood for J-pop. A very old CD of American alternative she had forgotten about caught the corner of her blue eyes. She remembered, with a sad smile, Misao giving it to her, the very energetic girl saying that this group '_rocked like hell_'. Of course, she had been right, as usual. Somehow, the green-eyed girl had a sixth sense when it came to music.

Flipping the plastic case open, Kaoru pulled the CD out and thrust it into the player, pushing the volume as high as she could without disturbing the neighbors. Feeling like listening to one song in particular, she skipped through the tracks until a strange but melodious guitar started playing soon followed by the rasp, rough voice of the singer. She smiled at the very unique lyrics, wondering just how he came up with such weird and yet wonderful words. She was that innocent sometimes. Caught up in the enticing beat, she sang along, her voice much softer than that of the singer, making it the most unusual duet ever known to the world.

"I'm so happy, 'cause today I found my friends, they're in my head… I'm so ugly, that's OK 'cause so are you, you broke our mirrors… Sunday moments, and everyday for all I care, and I'm not scared. Light my candles, in a daze 'cause I found god… Yeeaaah heeeyy…"

As the music continued, she took her brush and jumped on her bed as if standing on a stage, dancing the best she could to music that was not meant to be danced to, having the time of her life -- well, a good time at least. She laughed at the absurd lyrics she sang, her English accent broken by her Japanese tongue, but clearly understanding what she said although not sure her aunts would.

"I'm so lonely, but that's OK, I've shaved my head, and I'm not sad… And just maybe, I'm to blame for all I've heard, but I'm not sure. I'm so excited, I can't wait to meet you there, but I don't care… I'm so horny…"

She was cut short in her glee by her door being forcefully opened and Sae's ever smiling face appeared in the gap, startling the singing girl. Sae's face turned red upon hearing the word her niece had just sung. Of all the few words of English the woman knew, she had to enter Kaoru's room while she was singing at the top of her lungs the word '_horny_'. The word '_Embarrassed_' was an understatement of what the poor high school girl felt at the moment while her aunt's eyes glared at her -- well, the closest to a glare that she could manage -- forcing Kaoru to take a few steps backwards and she tripped over the heavy comforter that had tangled around her bare feet. With a high-pitched yelp, the girl fell over the bed and hit her head on the wall close by, only her feet remained on the disheveled bed.

"What kind of music is that?" said the woman in a tone of reproach, speaking to the girl's wiggling feet.

"Nirvana…" said the feet between moans of pain.

"And they let young girls buy those kind of… songs?"

"It's just music, Aunt Sae," groaned Kaoru, her head popping up from the bed's edge to stare at the woman. "You could have at least knocked…" she wined after a second of uncomfortable silence.

"I'm sorry, but someone's here to see you."

"Oh…" she blinked a few times and then clumsily gathered herself up.

Still in her pink teddy bear boxers and purple Hello Kitty tank top -- and not remembering she was -- she walked to the door without much of a care. Her bedroom door left ajar, the last tones of '_Lithium_' resounded quite awkwardly. A careless smile adorned her face as she trotted to the waiting person. She wondered just who could be there to see her when her circle of friends were close to non-existent -- non-existent at all should be more accurate. The girl froze, almost dead, in her tracks when she noticed vibrant scarlet hair that framed a set of lavender eyes which stared at her in outmost shock.

"Miss Kaoru…. Hum… you forgot this in the car yesterday…" said a very uneasy Kenshin upon the discovery of his student in a very scant and revealing outfit -- and lets not forget, utterly cute.

"Um… thank you… K.. Kenshin…"

Least to say, the blush covering her otherwise pale face could have rivaled the brightness of her teacher's long flaming hair. Kaoru took the offered pencil, it was a very childish but lovely _Hamtaro_ blue pen that Misao had given her the previous year saying that it went along with -- start quote -- '_that kiddy stuff of yours_' -- end quote --. In all, her collection of Saturday morning show by-products included her _Hello Kitty_ tank top, a fluffy pair of Mokona slippers, a _Samurai Pizza Cats_ lunch box, a _Candy Candy_ blanket, a Moogle watch, that _Hamtaro_ pencil, and of course, she had tones of stuffed toys of different anime characters starting from _Sailor Moon_ to _Ah My Goddess_ -- err, well if you recite your alphabet backward it would start that way. She was not really an anime fan; she just had a weird collection of anime stuff.

Wriggling her toes uncomfortably, Kaoru steered her eyes clear of her teacher's face, trying to hide, to her best capability, the red heating her cheeks. Unknown to her, Kenshin felt just as uncomfortable. If to see her drenched on the first day of school was somewhat appealing to him, seeing his student in her nightwear was even more. With an incredible turn of fate, fortunate or not, Sae padded her way to join the awkward pair standing in awkward silence in the lobby. The woman's ever-pleasant face turned from her niece to the charming stranger, curious and more then happy to show she was.

"Don't just stand there, Kaoru," she said, "why don't you invite you're friend in?"

"Err… Aunt Sae…" the unfortunate teenager started but of course, the woman would not hear it.

"Please, follow me to the kitchen. I'm so happy to see that my niece finally made at least one friend. I was starting to think that she had fallen into an anti-social phase…"

"Aun… Aunt Sae!" wined Kaoru.

But she was deaf to any sort of protest the younger girl could utter. Seizing the very confused Kenshin by the arm, Sae led him to the kitchen, babbling all the way in a constant flow of nonsense. Quite reluctantly, the girl followed, cursing Sundays more than ever, all the while trying to reason with the cheerful woman to hear her out. It was like forcing a cow not to chew.

"So… you are one of Kaoru's classmates?" Sae asked once he was seated, handing him a glass of water he did not even request.

"No I'm…" but she did not even let him finish.

"Kaoru used to have many friends. Her father would tell us, my sister Tae and me, of those clubs and groups she used to partake in. He was very proud of her, his little princess," confessed Sae with a far away look of found remembrance on her perpetually smiling face.

"Oh… I didn't know that. What kind of clubs?" Kenshin asked suddenly very interested for some mysterious reason Kaoru was not sure she wanted or needed to know.

"Um… She was chief editor of her school journal and also used to take care of the reader's column and the art and culture section, weren't you honey?" not even acknowledging the small nod of the girl, Sae kept talking. "She is a very good writer you know. She won many prizes. Her poetry is exceptionally good. I'm surprise she had not talked about it with you. Maybe it was out of modesty, our little Kaoru is very quiet about her incredible achievements. Still, her friends in Tokyo used to support her all the way."

Kaoru groaned, not sure she was willing for her aunt to tell her life in details like this to her Writing teacher. Actually, she was not comfortable with it at all, she decided, when Kenshin's stunning lavender gaze turned to look at her. She was too preoccupied in her self-loathing, though, to see the surprised appreciation that glowed in those incredible irises. This strange girl was, indeed, very surprising to him. Whenever they would meet, a new part of her personality would appear to him, and it was not displeasing. Truth be told, he was eager to know more.

"She was part of the Kendo club too. She used to teach some of her father's style to the younger students and was adjutant master in his dojo. He didn't have much time to teach, you know, his work took him a lot of places. Kaoru surprised many with her skills in the Tokyo schools tournament two year ago by winning second place and again last year! I still believe she was better than her opponent, Tae says that it should have been a draw. I say the judges were corrupted, don't you agree Kaoru-honey?"

Said girl was about to protest but Sae would not let her utter so much as a word, too wrapped up in praises for her young niece. Kaoru, defeated, only stood there, twisting her fingers nervously and looking at the boring linoleum that covered the kitchen's floor as if discovering some hidden beauty in the otherwise rather ugly tills. How she hated it when her aunt would speak so wildly of her past achievement and she had nothing to say -- correction, would not be allowed to say anything.

"Last year, she tried the art club. I think she did fairly well, but she wouldn't let me say it. She says that her friend Misao is much better an artist than her. You know how friends are. Still, we are very proud of her."

"I think that's enough, Aunt Sae…" pleaded the ill-fated girl.

The teacher only listened, apparently drinking in each word that would flow out of the woman's mouth as an incessant river, leaving no room for any sort of answer, acknowledgement or protest. Kaoru, growing more embarrassed by the second, her face having exceeded by far the brightness of Kenshin's long strands, tried desperately to change the subject or at least tell her exasperating aunt that she was not talking to a friend of hers, but her teacher. Too much information, thought the girl gripping the ledge of a chair for support when, to her utter dismay, Sae had started to describe her niece's first attempts at cooking. Now, how the conversation turned from her previous social life to her lamentable cooking skills, she did not know.

"Really, I don't understand why everything she does taste so bad. While the rest of the family was famous for their cooking, she could burn water…"

"That's enough!" exclaimed a fuming, red-faced Kaoru.

Steam would have erupted from her ears, if such things were possible, since her anger and humiliation were so grand. Sae paused in her random babbling, stared at the girl with confusion all over her cheerful face, not even beginning to understand Kaoru's outburst.

"Aunt Sae… This is my Writing and Literature _teacher_ Mr. Himura Kenshin…" she said stressing the word teacher quite clearly.

"Really?" the woman turned to stare at the redhead. "Aren't you a bit young to be a teacher?"

"Err…" for the first time able to say something, Kenshin was quite at lost for words. "I'm 28…"

"What? But…"

"Please, just let him go. I'm sure Mr. Himura has better things to do than hear about… my life." Once again, Kaoru was ignored; Sae lost in yet another fit of talking and questioning.

"How long have you been teaching Mr. Himura?" At least this time she would listen to the answer.

"It's been nearly five years. I was lucky to get the job just as soon as I got out of university. You see, my Godfather is friends with Kyoto High's principal, that he is," explained the teacher after taking a sip of water.

"Really? Do you enjoy teaching? I once wanted to become one myself, but it seem that studies were not the thing for me. My twin sister, Tae, and I have a restaurant, the Shirobeko. Let me tell you that it's time consuming…" suddenly, the ever-smiling woman stared at Kenshin with an expression that made him gulp unconsciously. "Don't have much time for other things, if you know what I mean," she continued earning herself a dirty look from her niece, which she blatantly ignored.

"Um…" said a very uncomfortable Kenshin, giving her a smile that skillfully concealed worry, fright and unease -- other wise called the _Rurouni Smile_ but this description does not fit this story --.

"Is teaching just as time consuming?" asked Sae.

"We have about the same schedule as the students…" he explained, shifting on his seat as the woman's face got closer -- and if it was possible, a huge sweat drop would have appeared behind his brightly colored head.

Kaoru could not believe what she was seeing… and hearing. Mere moments before, her aunt thought the teacher to be her friend, then realizing this was not the case, her course of babbling changed to more casual things, and now she was, at least to the teenager's point of view, openly trying to seduce him. Shaking her head and sighing loudly, the young girl thought quite heatedly that her family, well what was left of it, had some fuses in the head that needed some medical check up. She was used to her aunt's strange behavior, but it seemed that this time Sae had managed to loose a few bolts in her brain. She only wished insanity was not hereditary.

"Say… are you married?" that was a very bold, very personal and very embarrassing question to ask.

"Oro… yes…that I am," he blurred out looking more confused than anything else.

Kaoru face-faulted, an embarrassed blush spread, once more, over her cheeks. Recovering quickly, she glared daggers at her aunt. Could she not just shut her talking trap for once, thought the young woman. Now, she would have trouble looking at her teacher on Monday. Too much information of your educator's life was just as awkward as him having too much on you. The girl moaned in utter helplessness, wondering how the situation could possibly grow worse. Just as she thought that particular statement, the front door busted open and a woman, very much alike Sae, entered with a smile just as wide. Maybe Kaoru should not have asked, even if only to herself. Her face burned under the scarlet that covered it.

Now, the young woman was sure of it, Sundays were curse to her, just as Mondays were to Garfield. She would not be surprised if a cream pie would '_splut_' her on the face, or the overweighed lasagna-lover cat would pop out of nowhere thinking some strange and funny things for everyone to hear -- if hearing the thoughts of an orange cat was considered possible. Groaning in mental pain, feeling the wake of a headache, she pinched the bridge of her nose, willing herself far, far away from this madness.

"Tae!" exclaimed Sae upon the arriving of her twin. "Kaoru-_chan_'s teacher came to pay us a visit…" she stopped for a second in silent wondering and than turned toward the redhead. "Why did you come here anyway, Mr. Himura?"

"Miss Kaoru forgot her pencil in the car yesterday," he told them.

"Oh… What was she doing in you're car?" the sound of reproached filled her voice as she stared back at him.

"I drove her back home after her detention…" now he was really uncomfortable.

"You did just that?" Kaoru did not like the suspiciousness that lingered in Sae's tone.

"Oro?"

Tae just stared at the trio, dumbfound. Kaoru was fidgeting, still in her pajamas, the red-haired man shifted uncomfortably on his stool, a very confused expression on his handsome face, and Sae was staring accusingly at him. Could Tae not leave the house without finding it in such a mess when she returned?

"I don't think I understand what's going on here…" uttered the new comer.

"Trust me, you don't want to know," said Kaoru with pleading eyes.

"Well… I think I'll be leaving now... My wife came back two days ago and… I would like to see her before she leaves again…" the last part was a lie, but everything was fair when one wished to leave such a demented household unscathed.

Kaoru's spirit soared. It was not that she disliked the longhaired teacher. Come to think of it, he was the best teacher in that hateful school of hers. But having him here, in her house, was becoming quite a mess. Add to it the tension Sae had just put on them with her strange questions and constant babbling, a bit of quiet was as welcome as bed to an exhausted traveler.

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Kenshin drove back to his house, his head throbbing. He had seen crazy women in his life, but none of them came close to the brazen Sae. He had been very surprised. Kaoru was a tad bit strange, he thought that her family would go accordingly with her but this… madness was not, and by far, what he had envisioned. The teacher was waiting at an intersection, observing the signalization lights with an absent mind. What did he expected anyway? Why had he come to her house in the first place when he knew he could have just given her the pencil Monday morning? Maybe he was curious. Must have been, there were no other coherent reason, not to his point of view anyway.

Recalling the previous morning events, he tried to figure things out. When the five hours of the girl's detention were over, he asked if she would mind if he drove her back to her house. He did not know why he asked, nor was he sure why she accepted, she just did and they were off. While steering the car through the traffic of a Saturday afternoon, she wrote down some notes, answered some of his questions, but kept silent most of the time, simply starring out the window at the landscape in motion. They reached her building, an old apartment complex in the outskirts of town, near the not so recommended neighborhoods of Kyoto where he once lived. Reassembling her things, the '_kiddy_' pencil slid out of her bag as she shoved it on her back, muttering a '_Thank you_' and disappearing through the glass-doors and up the stair-way.

Kenshin had only noticed the pencil when he slid out of his car once he had reached his apartment parking-lot. Picking it up, he stared at the round, fuzzy animals that smiled at him blindly and it was all he could do but to smile back at them. He was still smiling at the writing tool when he entered and Tomoe had arched an eyebrow at his behavior. He had simply shaken his head and set off to the kitchen, feeling hungry. His wife only returned to what she was doing, not giving him more than a look.

There was a loud noise and Kenshin was not so gently driven out of his momentary unawareness. While he had been so deep in thought and remembrance, the light switched to green and the car behind, or the driver at least, had grown impatient and hit the horn, startling the teacher, and possibly any other drivers in the vicinity. The rest of his journey back home was uneventful, same landscape, same neighborhood, dreadfully depressing. The radio played some old American song, sad and leering. Strange how he had not realized he had turned it on.

Kenshin pulled the car into the driveway, stopping the engine in a mechanical way, slid out and closed the door, which he had previously locked. He absently heard the clicking of the door as it connected with the closing devise, and marched to the house, staring in space. He slid the key into the hole, unlocking the door. The living room as silent as expected. He knew better than to get a heartfelt greeting upon his arrival. Tomoe sat at the dining table, reading the paper, her coal-like eyes, emotionless and serious, swiftly read through the headlines to find something to hold her interest, which was a rarity.

Dropping his keys in the pot on the secretary that rested in a gap between the dining room and living room, Kenshin strolled to the kitchen more out of habit than anything else. Most people, when returning home, went straight to the refrigerator to open it for some unknown reason and close it soon after, the young Writing teacher was one of those. He felt his wife's distant glance on his back but paid no mind. Heavy silence was a routine when Tomoe was home. He had once tried to probe into her mind, tried to make her happy. Then, one day, he realized that maybe she just was not a person who sought happiness, at least not with him.

Sighing, the redhead shuffled to his study, closing the door behind him. He could not bear to stay in the same room as her anymore, not when they were home. The weight of helplessness and maybe guilt was too much, he could not face her. He would spend the rest of the day there, waiting dusk to come and Monday's sun to rise. Through the night, he would share a cold bed with a cold woman. When did his youthful illusions turned into such a nightmare?

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A month passed since the ordeal of the fated Saturday detention and Kenshin's awkward meeting with his new student's colorful aunts. May only just started, bringing along the subtle fragrances of summer. Nights were still chilly, but rain no longer befell upon Kyoto as frequently as it had in the course of April. Students were growing restless, the promise of summer holidays lingered in the air like an electrifying perfume of freedom. The '_Soaked Through_' episode seemed to have elapsed and Kaoru could finally enjoy some solitude devoid of teasing. True, some fellow students would still point her way, but in all, it was done and over with, much to the teenager's relief.

Sitting at her usual desk near the window where she could extract most of her inspiration, the black-haired girl was rereading her last writing assignment. It seemed that her teacher shared her passion for poetry -- much to the rest of the class dismay -- and had taken upon himself to fill their young minds with the best writers and authors Japan and other counties had to offer. She was grateful for this, considering that at the moment, her mind was so closed to anything new -- including friends -- and that she could not afford to see her grades drop.

The bell signaling to the students that the class was over did not reached Kaoru's ears, however loud the said school equipment was, so caught up in her work. The class emptied swiftly, but still she sat at her place, oblivious to the changes in her surroundings, raising interest in her teacher's mind. Walking to the only occupied desk left in the class, Kenshin stood there for several minute willing the girl to notice him, but she was, at the time, scanning her dictionary, and not aware of much anything else.

"Um… Miss Kamiya. The class is over and if you don't hurry, you'll be late for the next one," he informed her, startling her in the process.

"What?"

Looking up, a hand reaching for her rapidly pacing heart, her blue eyes met his violet ones. He smiled pleasantly to her and she looked around realizing for the first time that she were, indeed, the only person left in class beside the teacher.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Himura," was her lame apology, red covering her cheeks.

"It's alright. Would you mind giving me your text?"

"Why?"

Yet another warm smile. "I need your copy so I can correct it, that I do… unless you are planning on getting an incomplete report."

"Oh…" was all she said.

Getting up and gathering her personal items before shoving the whole rather unceremoniously into her back pack, she blushed once more and gave him the poem she had been working on throughout the class. Kenshin turned his attention back to the paper, reading it over once before staring blankly at it while the girl marched toward the exit. She was about to leave when she heard him, voice barely above a whisper but clear to her considering the lack of noise in the room.

"This is… beautiful."

Kaoru froze in her retreat and turned an inquisitive stare towards her educator whose eyes were still glued to the piece of poetry she handed him. Silence lingered, making Kaoru quite uncomfortable before he noticed she was still there. Reading the question on her face, the young crimson-haired teacher pointed at her work before he explained.

"You are very talented, Miss Kamiya. Although I had never doubt your abilities, I must confess that you never cease to surprise me."

"I…"

"It's only a shame that you do not exploit your talents further more. Tell me, how many contest have you participated in?" he suddenly asked.

"Contests? I…" her face became hot and she was wondering if so much embarrassment in one shot was healthy. "Two..."

"Really?" he pushed.

"They were… school contests… and it was because one of my friends registered me without asking," Kaoru's temper was rising as she remembered Misao lack of tact. The girl had gotten herself quite a hearing after Kaoru heard of her best friend's initiative.

"Miss Kaoru," he started not realizing he had dropped the proper way of teacher/student talking, using once more her given name instead, as he had a few weeks ago. "There is a national poetry contest going on and I have been mandated to choose one student to participate for this school," he saw the hesitation darken her features. "Just think about it. It won't necessarily be you since we will have an intra-school contest. Everybody needs to have their chance, that they do."

Kaoru nodded, shifting the weight of her school bag over her shoulders before turning her back to him and crossed to the door to be lost in the tides of excited youth chatting and running along the corridors, in route to their next class. Kenshin stood where he where, returning his soft gaze to the paper, he read once more.

_Solace_

_Lone upon this world_

_One's spirit comes to silent wonders_

_Reminiscences of the mind, by others, hurled _

_Whilst leaving One, alone, suffers_

_No hand to grasp_

_No comfort to gain_

_Their words echoing rasp_

_Alone, One cannot escape pain_

_Confusion darkens One's vision_

_Lost within torments and brooding_

_When there is no salvation_

_And no sight of the ending_

_One stumbles still_

_One's journey endless_

_Nothing can weaken One's will_

_For resolute mind lies deepest_

_However alone and in need_

_One, someday, will find Friend_

_To offer the remedy to the ill_

_And comfort, in the end_

_Overpowering the darkness_

_With smiles and soothe _

_Bring the wandering One to rest_

_Induce unease to come loose_

_And there will be no more throbs_

_Only warmth will remain_

_And their will be no down thumbs _

_Solace, finally attain_

It would be a shame for her not to share her immense talent with the world, that it would.

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**_When I wrote this chapter, I was still stumbling to see the story in its whole. All I remember having in mind was Kenshin's failing marriage for a vaguely known reason (reason that will change later), Kenshin and Kaoru should end up together and a reason for them to see each other often. That's how the poetry contest was created. An excuse, in the beginning, for Kenshin and Kaoru to spend time together. However, later, that contest will take more and less importance at the same time. I'll leave it to you to figure that contradiction out._**

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**_Eden's Epitaph_**

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_Edited by Guardian Forever_


	4. Breaking Monotony and Scarlet Silk

**Warnings: Some craziness, vomiting toilets and natural reaction to disasters. **

**__**

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**_Honeysuckles and Moonlight Shreds_**

_By Eden's Epitaph_

Chapter 3: _Breaking Monotony and Scarlet Silk_

Yahiko never was a morning person. When he would wake up with the annoying and strident buzz of the robot-like alarm clock -- one of Kenshin and Tomoe's birthday gift -- that rested so innocently on his bed table, the boy would groan rashly, throat having dried through the night, and try to annihilate the futuristic clock -- the married couple knew him well. Then, lids still heavy with sleep, he would stare at the round eyes of the figurine where the hour glowed in neon red, curse as colorfully as his young mind could, yank the covers away with irritation and push his feet to the floor. That little ritual done, the boy would stomp his way loudly to the small kitchen of the equally small apartment he shared with Sanosuke and fix himself the same breakfast he ate every school-day.

This morning was no exception, and the angry boy stood glaring the usual daggers at the toaster, waiting none too patiently for the two pieces roasted bread to be ungracefully ejected from the machine. Knife in hand, a pot of peanut butter on the counter next to the old metallic toaster, Yahiko waited and waited. But the darn thing would not give him his bread this morning. Resisting the impulse to just throw the thing out the window, or at least down the trash bin, the spiky haired kid gave it the middle finger, sticking his tongue out but only getting his own reflection on the rust of the old toaster for all answer.

Behind him, someone stifled a sneaker causing the grade school student to turn an exasperated face, more then ever warped in his usual morning bad mood, he stared angrily at Sanosuke. The tall man who, so it seemed, had never matured enough to be designated as an adult, at least to the child's point of view, laughed openly at the frustrated youth before walking past him and opening a cupboard so his large hand could retrieve the pot of morning elixir -- or coffee. Plugging the electric kettle so the water he had previously poured in would boil, he reached for a wire that, it seemed, had appeared out of nowhere.

"This would work much better if the toaster was plugged," he simply stated to his nephew.

A growl was all the recognition Sanosuke would get from Yahiko this morning -- or any other morning. Sighing, the giant of a man shrugged, knowing perfectly well that his young companion would never thank him, not the morning, not ever it seemed. Maybe if he helped the boy without making it look as if he were mocking the him, but it was too much fun to do it any other way.

"You're up earlier than usual. Any good reason?"

Yahiko only scoffed, ignoring the teasing tones in Sano's voice. Truth be told, Sanosuke could say anything he wished in the morning without fearing a heated reply from his nephew. Yahiko would not utter a word until a full thirty minutes had past from the moment he got out of bed. As if agreeing with that thought, the toaster spit out the bread, the two pieces getting scattered on the counter from the force of the springs. Maybe Sano should fix that thing. He remembered quite painfully a morning when he had made that same meal and got his forehead burnt after the old machine had ejected its hot load to his face with quite some force. It was the only morning he could remember Yahiko starting to talk after only five minutes, the event having rose his spirit enough. If Sano remembered right, that whole day had not been a very good one either.

Munching on his roasted piece of peanut butter bread, Yahiko gave his guardian an icy glare, showing his teeth as an angry dog would, telling him to back off his food when Sano moved to steal one. The boy walked out of the kitchen, the sound of his footsteps vaguely resembling that of an elephant and the door of the bathroom was slammed shut.

"You don't need to wake the whole building you know!" cried a half-amused, half-exasperated Sanosuke.

"Shut up!" was the child's crude reply.

How he loved those little morning rituals when they would show how much they appreciated each other's company in such early hours of the day. The kettle started its annoying whistling, a high pitched sound that proclaimed loud and clear that the water within its large container was boiling. Seizing an old mug, which colors could have once been white though it was hard to tell now, Sano poured a certain amount of the hot liquid. It took a rich dark brown color, turning into coffee promptly. He was about to add some sugar to the mixture when a loud shout made him jump in surprise, the jar of sugar slipping from his hand and crashed on the hard yellow tiles, shattered in many shards of broken glass and sugar partials to sprawl all over the kitchen floor.

"Damn it all! What's the problem, BRAT!" Sanosuke was furious.

Seconds after, said boy came running, shirtless, boxers hastily pulled up and breathing hard. He was furious. Brown eyes blazing fire at dumbfounded man.

"The stupid toilet butchered again! There's water everywhere in the bathroom!" He spit, angrily.

"Oh no!"

Realization sank in with less than a fraction of second and the tall Sano ran to the bathroom, a mask of affliction covering his usually easygoing expression. Sure enough, when he opened the door, he saw the disaster. Soiled water slipping down the toilet slips of what was once hygienic paper swirling in the basin of brow water that also covered the ground.

"Find the mop kid and bring it here, NOW," instructed Sano, chocolate eyes glued to the catastrophe. "What a wonderful way to wake up…"

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Himura Kenshin's morning was always the same. His antique alarm rang its bells loudly assuring a rapid wake. Beside him, if she was home, Tomoe would just open her eyes, stare at the ceiling and wait for the noise to stop before turning her back to him and returning to the land of dreams. Then, Kenshin would get up, his feet blindly looking for his black slippers, put on a shirt and exit the bedroom as silently as he could. It would change a bit, depending if Tomoe was here or not or if it was the weekend, but usually, he would always be the first one to get up.

He was no coffee drinker, preferring the taste of sweet tea to the bitter taste of coffee beads. The old burnt kettle on the stove's element, he would fix himself a light breakfast consisting of rice cookies and yogurt. Later in the morning, he would eat some random fruit taken out of the refrigerator and a muffin bought on his way to school. His first meal done with, Kenshin got to the bathroom and took his usual morning shower, the semi cold water washing away the last of sleep that would linger in his muscles.

This morning, however, brought something a bit different from any other mornings. As he got out of the tub, dripping water, a towel around his waist and vigorously shaking his long bright mane free of the excess water with another, the phone started ringing demanding a swift answer. Sighing, the high school teacher got out of the bathroom, mumbling some 'wait' and 'just a minute' to the machine. He took hold of the receiver to be greeted by the voice of an exasperate Sanosuke.

"Kenshin! Man, I need a hand here. The toilet broke again and I've got to stay here so for stupid plumber! Yahiko will be late to school if someone doesn't drive him there…"

"Alright, I'll be there in a few minutes."

"Thank you! I owe you one."

"More than one actually…" said the redhead before ending the conversation.

As he turned back to the bathroom he saw Tomoe's head pop out of the bedroom door, her cold black eyes demanding, in a very bored way, what was all the racket about. Smiling softly, red hair still dripping, and tightening the knot of the towel that preserved his dignity, Kenshin explained.

"Their toilet is pulling pranks on them again…" And that was all there was needed to be said.

The door was closed and a wishful sigh escaped his lips, against his resolve not to let it slip. He walked back to the bathroom, slid his clothes on, gave his hair one last shake before brushing them and tied them back at his nape. It took less the 5 minutes -- which was a record time -- and he was out, keys tinkling in his hands, his old briefcase in the other, shoved the whole into the back seat of his old car -- why was everything so old? -- started the engine and was gone. The drive to Sanosuke's apartment building was swift.

The building in which Sanosuke and Yahiko had called their home was dirty. The red bricks broken at the bottom, some of them still in the process of cracking in two pieces, the roof was just as badly damaged, a few tiles -- if not half of them -- had flown away with the fierce wind of too many storms. The lock of the glass door of the building had been broken ages ago, so long that Kenshin wondered if it ever worked. The 'buzz' as so many would call that doorbell device at the entrance had most of its buttons torn off and the tiles of the would-be-mosaic of some abstract design was damaged to the point of no repair.

Inside, the corridor's walls, which could have once been white, were a sick smoky yellow, at some places brown stains of water leaks that had something to do with crevice time had wormed in the ceiling. On the floor laid a dusty grey rag, common to most apartment buildings, with cigarettes burns here and there covering the floor with so many black craters that the surface of the moon would have been jealous. As he passed a door, he heard a man shouting, the sound of glass being shattered, the cries of a child. It reeked of misery and pain everywhere. How much he wished he could make the difference. Why was it that some people had everything and so many got only the leftovers? Why money seemed to always flow in the wrong hands whilst the rest of their contemporaries worked so hard so they could have a somewhat decent life? Must everything be gained on the detriment of others?

Kenshin shook his head; such ominous thinking was not healthy so early in the morning. He reached number 18, the varnish of the wooden door was flaking and peeling slowly off the surface becoming nude at some places, and heard the tantrum inside. From his position, the teacher could discern Yahiko's voice. He used, with boyish intonation, the colorful expressions of his generation about an unknown object that was the cause of many misdeeds. Not bothering to knock, the teacher turned the greasy knob -- which golden color had tarnished to a dull bronze -- and was met by the very red and angry boy who was fighting with his shoes that were still fitting the day prior and suddenly were too small.

"Stupid things! Piece of trash!"

The rest of his violent vocal outburst was lost when Sanosuke, a mop in hand, appeared in the living room. The tall man had a somewhat glowing aura of anger around him that, if such a thing were possible, would have burnt anything that would be insane enough to step too close. His grip on the wooden stick of the cleaning instrument was so tight, it was a wonder it was still in one piece. It seemed as if all of his blood had rushed to his face so vivid was the color. Sano was still sporting his sleepwear, a pair of white slacks, a dripping line brownish liquid at the bottom.

"What's the problem again?" he yelled.

"Shoes don't fit," hissed the boy. "I need new ones! I told you, like, three weeks ago and still nothing! Are you sure you're brain still works the right way?"

"Don't talk to me that way! I don't have the time, patience or money to give you everything you want!"

"But they are too small!" argued Yahiko, still fighting with the footwear.

"Damn it! Broken toilets and now shoes. Has some unknown force decided to rob me of all the money I have!" sighed Sano, his grip getting tighter, knuckles turning white.

"Err…" Kenshin muttered, feeling very uncomfortable with this awkward turn of events. "Maybe I could…" and then he fell silent, two sets of eyes turned his way, both blazing in anger.

The short man took a step back, feeling very much as a mouse would be when cornered by two hungry stray cats. Never one to be at ease in such situations, the poor luckless teacher found himself pondering if it had been such a good idea to agree to drive the kid to school today.

"It's not my fault if you can't keep a job for more than a week!" yelled the kid, his attention back on Sanosuke.

Jumping on his feet and then howling in pain. "That's it! I'm not going to school until I have new shoes!" he declared sitting cross-legged in front of the door taking off the hateful shoes and throwing them at Sano.

Kenshin could see Sanosuke's eyebrow twitch menacingly which was a definite sign that, soon, the fragile barrier holding back his rage would break. And just as the redhead thought it, Sano's face grew redder, almost purple, a vein on his forehead pulsing dangerously and, with a roar of anger, pounced on Yahiko.

"Brat! You'll get to school whether you want it or not!"

The bigger grabbed the smaller and became a heap of arms and legs lost in the figurative cloud of battle. There was a shout, Yahiko's head appearing out of nowhere, his teeth in a death grip on Sano's hand. Yelling out in agony, the tall man jumped to his feet, trying to shake the kid off his hand, as one would do to try to get a piece scotched tape off their fingertips. However, the boy's hold was strong, Sanosuke's struggle became in vain, and the fight transformed into a glaring contest. It made a rather amusing picture to see them in such position, Yahiko hanging by his teeth on his caretaker's hand, glaring fire at him, Sano glaring back, holding his hand leveled with his eyes. Suddenly, he smiled in victory, ignoring the ache of his palm, pointing at the kid's feet, an evil grin playing on his tight lips.

"Seems you have your shoes on!" he declared victoriously in a strange and very painful way.

"What?" exclaimed Yahiko, opening his mouth and falling hard on the ground. "Not fair!" he shouted rubbing his abused rear.

"Um… May _sessha_ speak now?" asked Kenshin in a very subdued, very small voice.

"Sorry Kenshin. You can take that brat now," said Sanosuke wrapping his hand in bandages that had appeared out of nowhere. "Get your bag and get out!" he shouted at the boy.

Growling -- and also wincing each time his feet connected with the ground -- Yahiko went to his room, passing the bathroom with a disgusted frown on his young face. He returned, backpack balanced on his right shoulder and, not giving a glance at Sanosuke, vanished into the corridor. Kenshin gave his friend a sorry smile and followed, closing the door in the process. Behind it, he could hear the crude vocabulary of his long time friend, something about tiny spawns of evil and possessed toilets.

The teacher found Yahiko already sitting in the car, the seatbelt fastened, his fingers drumming in the dashboard. Starting the engine, Kenshin turned a smiling face to his younger passenger who just ignored him. Never one to give up this easily, young man started to move the car in the opposite direction of the kid's school. Turning his spiky head to him, a confused expression all over his face, brown eyes with question marks, Yahiko pointed toward the right direction.

"It's not the right way!"

"I know, that I do. But I was thinking that since you needed new footwear and that I had no class to teach this morning, we could use this spare time to find you some nice and fitting, shoes."

Grinning wildly, Yahiko made no objection. Finally, this morning could get much more enjoyable then it had first seemed.

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Sleeping was so pleasurable, a true blessing from the gods. Comfortably wrapped in the warm comforter and blankets, head resting on fluffy pillow, nothing could be wrong, right? But, of course, for Kaoru who lived with her wacky aunts, wishing to get a comfortable sleep and get up as late as possible was but a dream. In fact, since the day she moved in, Kaoru had known not to count on getting the chance to be lazy in the house. This morning was no exception as Tae entered the small bedroom.

Her niece was sleeping peacefully, lips parted, a hand resting above her head on the pillow, the other hugging one of her anime stuffed doll, the big eyes of the toy staring soullessly at the ceiling. The cheerful woman was almost guilty of waking the girl up so early, but it was a necessary evil. Carefully, she started shaking the slumbering girl gently as if frightened Kaoru might burn or bite. The girl muttered something incomprehensible and turned her back, drifting off again. Puffing her cheeks, Tae shook her niece once more, this time with more vigor. Same result. The girl just did not want to wake up.

Growing impatient, the usually smiling aunt gripped the heavy comforter and yanked it off the bed. This did the trick and Kaoru sprang to a sitting position glaring daggers at the idiot who dared to wake her. She met Tae's smiling face still holding the edge of the blanket in the hands she used to wave 'hello' sheepishly. Kaoru's blue gaze traveled from her aunt's pleasing facial expression to the alarm clock on the bed table beside her and blinked once, the twice, and once again. It displayed, in cheerful neon orange, a bright 4:30 am. Giving a quick look out her window, the girl saw only the purple hues of twilight, the waking sun tinting almost imperceptibly the sky in violet and red, lending the atmosphere a unique mysterious aura she enjoyed… but not when she had been woken up against her will.

"What's the big deal!" she cried.

"I need you at the restaurant this morning," said Tae in a mater-of-fact-with-a-finger-in-the-air way that she only knew the secret of how to make it so looking painfully annoying.

"I help you the weekend! Not in the middle of the week!" she whined waving her arms around so her words would take more power. It did not seem to work at all.

"Sae is sick. She's got a fever and can't be working today. Don't worry, you won't be in the kitchen. I don't want to lose the few costumers we have left."

Kaoru growled and bit her tongue. It was no secret to the family that Kaoru had the worst cooking skills, but they did not need to bring it up every time the conversation seemed to fit the remark. Snatching her comforter from Tae's hand, the blue-eyed girl clumsily put it back on the bed muttering curses about luck, fate and crazy aunts.

"Don't you go back to sleep!" shout the woman.

"I've got school today, I can't help you!" argued Kaoru.

"I'll call the principle and tell him you will only attend to the afternoon classes today. The restaurant is more important than school."

"Weren't you the one who told me that studying was the most import thing in life?" asked the girl arching an eyebrow.

"Beside the restaurant. I can't run it alone! You're getting up and helping me and that's final!"

With that, Tae left a very moody Kaoru, sitting on her bed. She knew she had lost the argument before it even started. Sighing in defeat, the young woman reluctantly pushed her sleep warmed feet to the cold floor, wincing from the shock of the contrast, a shiver running up her body from her toes to the root of her long, braided hair.

"Hurry up, we've got to be there at 5am sharp!" came Tae's voice from down the hall.

"A minute!"

Grabbing her school uniform along with the restaurant's pink dress and white apron, she got out of her room, thinking about taking a good warm shower. However, as she was about to open the bathroom door, Tae popped out from apparently nowhere.

"No time for that. Get dressed and grab something to eat. We only have 15 minutes left to get there."

Groaning, the younger turned around and returned to her room. The sun was barely pointing over the horizon, the sky no longer the purplish indigo but a reddish blue. She sat at the foot of her bad, grabbed her brush and stared at her reflection on the large mirror, untangling her ink-like hair while trying to strip off her sleepwear and dress in the hatful pink uniform all at the same time. She had managed to pull her hair up and straighten her clothing when Tae's voice told her to get to the kitchen, grab the toasts she had made for he niece, and bid her rush to the car. Tae would be waiting for her there.

Shoving her school clothes in the mouth of her black and yellow backpack, Kaoru ran down the hall to the kitchen, picked the cold roasted bread from its plate and ran to the door, toast in mouth, key in hand and school bag hanging somewhat precariously balance on her left shoulder. The door was shut quite audibly, the sound of it rebounding on the walls of the empty stairway. When Kaoru was a child, she used to talk softly in those hallways, thinking that, because it echoed just as it did in a church, she had to be silent and respectful. Now she did not care, her mood too full to care anyway. There went her typical morning. When will there be some sort of normality in her life?

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A pair of red and black sport running shoes waved in the air under the restaurant's table. Above, the table was covered, almost overload, with food. One would have thought themselves lucky if they could have seen the dull beige of the linoleums that covered its surface. A mouth full of the delicious meal, Yahiko beamed at Kenshin, forever thankful. The man chuckled as the boy shout at a waitress to get him more milk. He had not seen the child this happy since Sanosuke brought the boy to the amusement park about a year.

"Hey! Ugly, I want milk!" he shouted as a girl passed him by.

She stopped dead in her tracks, shoulders becoming rigid, her body trembling in the waves of anger that swamped her. The red-headed high school teacher was about to reprimand Yahiko when the waitress turned around, blue eyes turning devilish red, black hair flying about like so many whips. The tray she had been holding left her hand and came crashing, rather hard, on the boy's face.

"Hey! What's the..."

"Who did you call '_Ugly_'!" said the girl, taking a fistful of Yahiko's shirt.

Kenshin blinked. He knew that voice. His gaze traveled from the worn out brown shoes and slack white socks to the pink waitress uniform dress and the fluffy white apron, up to the pretty -- although very angry -- face, blue eyes and high ponytail of the girl.

"Miss Kaoru?"

It was the girl's turn to blink. She loosened her hold of the brat's uniform t-shirt, her head shooting in the young teacher's direction, her face red in embarrassment. She relinquished Yahiko's collar, the kid coughing under the tightened neckline of his shirt now slacken so air could return to his lungs, the girl startled.

"Mr. Himura! What are you doing here?" she asked.

"I could ask you the same, that I could," he said very politely. "Are you not supposed to be in class?"

"I.. uh… Well. It's aunt Sae. She woke up with a fever this morning and, being a very busy morning today, they needed a hand so I took the morning off," she explained with a smile.

"Kaoru! Honey, you know you must not talk with the… Why hello Mr. Himura," Tae appeared out of nowhere, her ever present smile bright on her face. "Oh, is this your son?"

For some strange reason, Kaoru's face grew red, but whether it was out of annoyance or something else, she honestly could not tell. Deciding that the former was much safer than the elusive later, she turned a pleading face toward her aunt. The girl was about to retort when Kenshin, a bit red on the cheeks, smiled brightly at the two women.

"No, he is not mine. He's under the charge of a very good friend. Besides, he's 10 years old, it's rather impossible for him to be my son," he explained.

"As if Tomoe would let him anyway…" mumbled the youth.

None of the girls had heard him, Kenshin, however, did and shot him a glance that said -- very clearly -- not to finish that thought. If truth be told, to Sanosuke and Yahiko, the catastrophe of Kenshin's marriage was no secret. Yahiko could clearly recall the many times his uncle complained about the ice-cold woman and her effects on the red-headed man. Whenever the subject was brought up, Sano would rant about how many times he had warned the fool -- namely Kenshin -- not to marry that girl, that they were not meant to be together, that it would be a mistake. But the teacher -- a college student back then-- had not listened, saying that it was the right thing to do. As Sanosuke told his young pupil, it did not last long. A wall was erected between the couple. Yahiko could not recall ever seeing them together for more then fifteen minutes.

Tae, taking Kaoru by the wrist, dragged her niece away from the pair, saying that they had customers to take care of, and as soon as the girl was gone, Kenshin grew silent, and his smile left his handsome features. Worried, Yahiko stared at him, but the teacher did not seem to take notice, lost in the whirlwind of a chaotic musing. His usually bright lavender eyes growing dark, he disappeared behind a veil of crimson silk, memories rising.

He had known since the beginning, doomed from the very moment he uttered his vow. Tomoe, she had no joy in her eyes when he asked her to marry him, did not smile at him. She remained cold and stoic in front of him, agreed with a simple tinge of thankfulness in her black gaze. However, Kenshin was not blink and he knew the reason behind their marriage as much as everyone else. It was his idea, after all, but he had dared to hope that, somehow, they would be happy, someday. Call it optimism; Sano said he was a fool. Now that Kenshin thought about it, the rough man had been quite right. If only the circumstance had been different, he would not be in such a mess, swallowed in the darkness of his wife, slowly drowning in the black hole of her loveless feelings.

Tomoe, for as long as he could remember, had always been the quiet, rarely smiling woman she was. But, back then, when they were all together, when the sky still shown blue and the stars smiled upon the future, she was not so cold, so emotionless. They were young, everything was always easier when one was youthful. But everything changed that fateful night, when the moon had been full, veiled by the warmth of the early summer day, an ominous halo circling its roundness. To this day, he still wondered if the scythe of fate could have been avoided, if he could have prevented it from happening, but he was still so young.

There had been so much blood afterward, spilled by many hands, even his. It pooled around them as events took place and some sort of madness spread. It felt endless, dark, cold and empty, and still a few found memories floated, barely above the surface, smothering the mixture of red grief with a melancholic happiness. Then the real pain, destruction and death seething in the shadows, none of them escaped unscathed.

"Kenshin? Are you alright?" a soft voice asked, coaxing him gently out of the bitter memories.

"Yes…" he uttered, eyes still hidden.

"You seem a bit pale… do you want some water?"

Yahiko stared at Kaoru who had just walked to them, a worry glance in her blue eyes. Kid and man had stood silent for quite some time, which was very uncharacteristic of Yahiko from what she had witnessed earlier. Concern was all over her delicate face, emotion showing in her deep ponds, the young boy had never seen someone so open before. Casting a glance at Kenshin, he saw him look up, amethyst locking with sapphire, and she smiled soothingly.

"I've been thinking about your proposition and, if it is to make you feel better, I'll be glad to give it a try."

The teacher's lips curved upward to Yahiko's confusion. For as long as he knew Kenshin, nothing could give him his smile back this fast after he had gone into the depth of his horrid reminiscence of the past. The boy did not know much of the teacher's partake, but from what Sanosuke would tell him, the red-headed man went through the worse of it.

"That's good," said Kenshin. "We'll be starting as soon as possible."

The boy grew confused, and very curious. What was this '_proposition_' about? It had sound… very strange to him. The way Kenshin's smile had returned, lighting up his darkened face, the soft expression that lit Kaoru's face. Was something going on between them? Shaking his head, Yahiko batted the thought away. No way Kenshin would do something like that, would he?

"I have some free time after school today. Meet me in class and we'll go over the procedures of the contest."

Yeah, Kenshin was not the kind of person to do something like that. Yahiko almost laughed out loud. How could he have been thinking such things about the redheaded? This was ridiculous.

"I'll meet you after school then."

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**_This chapter marked a turn in the story. That's when I started to see some sort of plot in the far distance, screaming for some attention. I could barely see it, it wasn't clear, but it was there. The earlier version spoke of the death of a girl named Uki as the reason for all the trouble behind Kenshin's past. However, now, it's someone else that took that place and that someone is yet to be revealed. Uki's implication in the story will remain vague for some times and I believe that it is only much later on that we will get some insight as to who exactly she was. Still, there was less to change in this then I previously thought. I suppose that, my own idea being foggy, I wrote purposefully evasively._**

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**_Eden_****_'s Epitaph_**

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_Edited by Merlock12 and GuardianForever_


	5. Lingering

**Warnings: Mild swearing. **

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**_Honeysuckles and Moonlight Shreds_**

_By __Eden__'s Epitaph_

Chapter 4: _Lingering_

She uttered a profound and long sigh, the exhale of breath straining longer than it should. Staring at a blank sheet of paper, hearing the clock ticking would, surly, drive the teenage girl mad. The fear of all writers, the white whole, feeling as if the lines of the sheet were mocking you, words stuck in your throat, making you chock in near-agony, and the feeling that never again will the muse visit you. Kamiya Kaoru was experiencing the horrors of a writer's blockage. Frustrated, completely, utterly, overwhelmingly frustrated, and left her with an itching need to just tear the page apart and shout so loud the western part of the planet would hear, she only sigh.

Her foot was stumping in irritation, the clapping of the old footwear resounding in the classroom, steering many glares in her direction. Soon, the tip of her pencil was joining in the dance of impatience -- that same dance students knew in so many variations of beat. And there it went again, the crestfallen sigh of utter displeasure, the pressure of time passing by and slipping out of her grasp. Kaoru stole a glance at the clock, 10 more minutes away and still nothing. Frustration was at its pike, her stomach churning as stress pointed its ugly nose within her, shoulder tensing, foot tapping faster, pen tap-dancing incessantly.

"Miss Kamiya…"

Startled, Kaoru looked up to stare into gentle violet eyes, worry darkening the color ever so lightly. She was so warped up in her own little world of loath and despair -- as all writer and artists find themselves falling into when inspiration oh so cruelly elapse them -- that she had not noticed or heard the young teacher approaching, concerned by her unusually nervous behavior. She blushed, all movements ceasing, right foot half way down to the next step of 'Slap-the-Floor-Nervously' and pen pushed into the table. The man gave her a reassuring smile, keeping his voice low so she would be the only to hear in the silenced room.

"Take a deep breath and try to calm down. Nothing will come out if you rush yourself, just try to relax, it's only a practice after all," he whispered, winking at her.

"Y.. yes," came her stuttered reply, face burning and eyes flitting away from his gentle gaze.

The redhead uttered a small, inaudible chuckle and turned back to his desk, mind wandering back to the events that took place only a few hours ago. Humor still lingered within the memory of the morning's events -- which, in a way, was not very far from a comedy when given a second thought. Smile playing on his lips, eyes absently watching his class, relatively hard at work, lost in the depth of inspiration or drowning -- in Kaoru's perspective anyway -- into the sea of _Nothing Good Out of Stupid Mind of Mine_ that seems to always get a grip of one or two students every dissertation or another.

The morning has been very usual, nothing out of the ordinary. He had left earlier than usual, having a few things to get ready for the morning class, instruction sheets to copy and a handful of homework to review along with a few correction of the previous day's dictation. Kenshin had been the first teacher in and he would probably be the last one out as well. The personnel had grown used to his early and late presence in school, having witnessed a few times the Writing teacher spending whole night in the teachers room, the janitor finding the poor man fast asleep on his chair amid a mess of paper and notes on the old desk.

The young man, after a quick and fructuous visit to pay his tribute to the god of _It's Too Dang Early_ -- or as everyone else calls it, the coffee machine -- he had slump down on his chair and started correction of messy essay one of his student had given him. Seriously, how come so many of those young minds had the tendency to get over with it as fast as possible, to hell the clean papers an readable writing, making correction all the more difficult. And here we are not talking about those who wrote so small one would need a telescope -- yes, yes, that big thing with which you spy on the stars above -- to read. At this rate, poor Himura Kenshin would soon need a pair of glasses, it would add to the '_I'm the Serious Teacher Here_' look that most of his fellow educationist claimed he lacked.

He was straining his eyes over one particularly tiny hand writing when a loud crashing sound screaming '_The Apocalypse has arrived!_' startled him, his heart going into overdrive, drumming into his ears like a battery solo of a power metal group that lacked musical talent. Of course, when one gets surprised, they lack coordination, and down went the pile of copies that had been, for once, neatly placed at the corner of an otherwise crumbling desk. In addition, as if it was not enough, so was the warm Styrofoam goblet of steaming coffee, spilling its rich -- but awfully tasting judging by the faces the Writing teacher made when taking a sip -- warm brown colored content on the once clean floor.

Violet eyes wide, the redheaded pushed himself on his feet and stumbled out of the teachers' room in search for the origin of that new '_Big Bang_', with a little bit of luck, he would finally discover the ignition to the entire universe, which no scientists with their mathematical brains and lines of calculation can seem to figure out. A slight bit on edge -- more like nerves near the breaking point -- Kenshin slid the door open, looking left then right, trying to locate the source of the previous cacophony. He barely had time to lay a foot on the corridor when a second sound -- akin to an explosion this time -- was heard, along with it, a painful sigh of desperation in the middle of loudly spitted curses that seem to origin from the classroom down the hall.

Now, where was the normal, usual morning when he used to blank his mind in work in peaceful silence and blessed loneliness? It went flying right out the window, as a new world seemed to be on the making in the classroom next to him. Passing a hand through the bright fiery locks that was his hair the young teacher slid the door open after taking a deep calming breath that, he was sure, would be necessary. He was ready for everything, having a short time ago given up on normality, Kenshin was certain nothing would ever surprise him anymore. After all, nothing could be worse than a drenched student coming late in class on the first day of school, right?

Right?

There in the middle of the classroom, semi-crushed under a pile of desks and chairs was a cursing heap of long black hair, school uniform and pure energy growling and very much near the third phase of world in making -- in simple words, near star formation heat, or if you rather, steaming in frustration --. And life once again proved him wrong; there were worse things then a student coming drenched and late in the first class of the term.

"Stupid good for nothing PIECE OF CRAP!" yelled the disheveled girl, pushing away the furniture that crushed her down to the ground, but with no real achievement, only managing to tangle herself further into her sad mess.

Oh yes, she was furious, ready to break anything apart and shred to pieces the first person who would see her like this, without exception. With a loud growl or exasperation, Kaoru pushed harder on the crumbled pile of school furniture, having enough sense to thank the gods for the event had taken place while nobody was around. That is, she was thankful until she heard a faint chuckle drifting by, mocking her, teasing her mood and boiling her blood. Her appreciation toward the gods turned venomous and soon, the teenager was hotly pestering over every divination her searing mind could remember. Taking a deep breath, she charged up her most menacing death glare and loaded her ammunitions of curses and every '_un-lady-like_' replay she had gathered over the years.

"Don't just stand there, damn it. Or are you just too blind to see when someone needs a hand. If that's the case, don't bother and pass your way," she paused in the middle of her speech, struggling with the tangle of hard legs, growling and grunting like a mad dog," or maybe you enjoy seeing a girl like this?" Saying that Kaoru angled her head so she could glare at the intruder upside down, her vision a bit distorted and unable to discern who exactly was by the doorframe. "Or maybe you're just too stupid. I doubt your brain can even register the pain some people are going through right now. Or maybe you're getting off seeing someone's misery!" Pushing some more on her tumbling cage, she raged more, wishing the day human invented such things never came. "You'd think someone would come to help, its common knowledge, you know. Didn't your mother ever tell you to be good with people and helping them when in need?"

"I recall her saying so a few times, yes, Miss Kamiya."

Kaoru froze in her struggle, her blue eyes widening to the size of spaghetti plates as the calm and collected voice reached her ears, went through the electric channel of her brain and hit her memory, placing the image of her teacher right on the big screen of her mind, the red marking screaming '_Warning, warning_' and the flashing red light going crazy in her encephalic '**_Head_**_ Quarters_'. She stood there frozen, not that she really had a choice in her present predicament -- already near zero movement capability -- watching as the upside down image of the redheaded teacher came closer to her. He was smiling gently, a glint of humor in his deep pools of amethysts. Kenshin reached for the chair that seemed to hold the pile together and carefully pulled it out, the rest sliding down around her in a loud roll of wood and metal crumbling to the ground.

"Mmm… Mr. Himura… I…" for once, she was speechless, her spunk and vitality drained with the perspective of yet another Saturday spent in the detention room. Her aunts were going to love this.

"Here, let me help you up," he said, offering her the hand she had asked for.

All the color of her skin drained, aside of the bright blush that covered her cheeks, Kaoru let herself be lift to her feet. Her eyes were running all over the place, scanning the floor, the messy pile of furniture right beside her, the windows, the black board, anything that wasn't Kenshin. The teenage girl's hand were fumbling around, smoothing the wrinkles of her skirt, dusting her arms, trying to keep herself busy and ignore the unsettling atmosphere that surrounded her.

"Ah... um… Thank... you."

"Don't mention it," smiled the teacher, already starting to clean the mess. "Just how did you managed all this?" he then asked, his voice somewhat teasing.

Kaoru's brow knitted, her temper rising again at the memory of the '_adventure_' that got her buried alive only a moment ago. Humping, sniffing in anger, trying her best not to tear or break anything as she forcefully started to replace the annoying objects of her previous torture; Kaoru shared the events leading to her burring, with great animosity.

"I was on cleaning chore today. Got up early so I could be done with it and pass on to other stuff, you know." She started, putting a chair back on its legs while talking. "I kind of went to bed too late yesterday and I was a bit tired and... well..." another desk back to its rightful position, "I guess you know how that is, when you're tired I mean. You don't really focus the right way." The girl uttered an uneasy laugh as she saw Kenshin pick up the half of a broken broomstick. "Well… that got stuck into a chair and I kind of tripped over the broom and then… everything fell."

The black haired girl gave the young teacher a semi-apologetic, semi-uneasy smile, rubbing her foot behind her calf, her stare finding great enjoyment on the dullness of the patterns on the floor. Kenshin, on the other hand, had trouble keeping himself from laughing out loud, not willing to further embarrassed the girl or mark himself as a good target for stress and frustration relief -- or as we call it, a living punching bag --.

"You don't look like the clumsy type," he sputtered without thinking, feeling much like he would soon regret those words.

"Well you'd be if you only got 4 freaking hours of sleep," Kaoru snapped, and so did the chair she was pulling up.

Rubbing the back of his neck, Kenshin tried to smooth his little mistake. "That's not what I meant…"

"That's how it sounded," was her angry muttered replay.

"What got you so late in bed," he inquired feeling that a slight change in subject and ignoring the low but heated retort was the best of option regarding the safe keeping of his life.

She blinked, picking up a torn piece of paper. "I've been working on ideas for the contest, trying to make a list, you know… Reading stuff, other people's poetry over the… subject…" her voice felt a bit uneasy as she looked away, pulling a lock of stray hair behind her ear.

"You're having trouble with the subject?"

Kaoru became stiff. Of course, the subject was hard, how can one write over something that they never experienced. Honestly, when she agreed to participate, Kaoru never thought there would be a given subject, and especially not one that spoke of so much depth. While passion is a wide area to explore, attached to so many things, but when one never truly felt it… how can they describe it, much less prose over it?

"I... um... It's just…" She nervously rubbed her right forearm with her left hand, keeping her back to the educator. "I can't really describe something I don't think I ever felt…"

Kenshin nodded, leaning on a desk, watching as the girl nervously played with the helm of her sleeves, her head turning every now and then to face different direction. He could see the rose spreading over her face, the silence not uncomfortable but not appreciated. Around them, the world seemed to keep rotating smoothly, an endless swirl of life that slowly engulfed the establishment of knowledge. Not so far, behind the walls of the room, students were walking in, chatting, not much of a care in the world beside of the next assignment, the new love interest and daily teenager's problems.

"I was as surprised as you were when I received the instructions for the contest," he confessed. "It's hard to imagine such feelings when you are so young, and the many faces of passion can be disarming."

"You tell me…," she murmured feeling rather sarcastic.

"Passion is something very hard to describe. Most authors have had a hard time; it's a deep feeling burning inside. You can probably imagine it," as he talked, he got closer, thoughts swirling over old memories. The tone of his voice changed, not exactly different, but weary it seemed. "You get crush by it, driven far away from normality, forgetting your mind, your purpose, yourself. Many only think of passion as something pleasurable…" he shook his head. "There's something very wrong about it, something painful as it grips you and pulls you down deeper in the swirls of the emotion that created it."

She looked up and faced her teacher, "... Kenshin...?"

The man was a few feet behind her, his gaze lost into the cerulean heavens, absorbed in the memories of long ago, far, and buried. Kaoru somehow felt remorseful as she saw regret and sorrow cross those beautiful orbs of lavender. It was odd, she never truly noticed him before. Of course, he was handsome, the girl was not blind, but there was something more, something that called to her, something that… She shook her head violently; this was her teacher for crying out loud. The mere thought of it was just sinfully wrong. And yet… the melancholic way he would stare at the fine silk of the sky, the bittersweet undertone of his voice, it made the teenager tremble.

She carefully sat on the desk that was behind her, facing the large clear windows, watching the fluffy forms of imaginary animals, furniture, food and whatever other daily object the wind would mold into them. Her fingers played with the worn wood of the edge of her invented seat, feeling the crafted marks of pencils and other sharp object used to draw words, symbols or sketches to scar a bit of the person that held the tool in a place that was too prompt to forget. She too, did leave a few marks of her existence, far back, where she belonged, where her dreams resided, where her life once meant something. Nevertheless, it was gone, forever, leaving her alone to craft herself new dreams and new meanings.

Sighing, the girl whispered, "I…. Looking at it this way… it sounds so sad and harsh."

Twisting his neck, Kenshin looked at the sobered teenager. She seemed somehow smaller, perched there on the old scholar equipment, her blue eyes watching the drifting clouds. It suddenly seemed as if a world has collapsed not so long ago, somewhere in the distance of her sapphire, a land of imaginings, sweet reveries had crashed and discovered, painfully, the real world. At this moment, in his mind, this small girl, as tiny as she seemed, her legs curled together and arms hugging her chest, no longer appeared to him as a child.

"All of our dreams, of love, of passion, what we thought would be… they are just that. Idle thoughts, meaningless and illusive," Kaoru whispered, eyes veiled by a thin fog.

"I... didn't mean it that way, that I did not" he felt as if he had shattered her hopes. Settling himself on the desk that stood beside her, purple orbs watching the soft movement of the heavens and turned back to his student, he tried to reassemble the broken pieces of his previous remorseful statement.

"It doesn't always turn out that way. Life is unpredictable, and words have many meanings. Kaoru, passion is not just what I described it as… I merely wanted to give you a different point of view, one that is not often explored by authors."

She nodded slightly, letting her gaze travel down from the sky to the imitation of granite that was the floor. She uncrossed her feet, swaying them back and forth, the old reddish black laces hitting the old polished soles with a soft 'click'. Sadness still marred her crystals, her hand gripping the worn edge, her knuckles turning white. Something about his earlier statement had been so very true, so poignant; it left a knot in her guts. Her brow furred, thoughts swirling within her mind, turning into images that she wanted buried along with everything else. As if sensing her torment, there was a sudden warmth on her shoulder followed by a gentle pressure and soothing rub. She looked up to meet comforting amethyst and an encouraging smile.

"Don't worry yourself over this. Passion or any other emotions for the matter, we all feel them differently. It's something that only one can feel, hard to describe, hard to name. Many others just don't have name. Sometimes, words are just not enough to express and silence can worth more than a thousand of words."

Kaoru blinked, finding herself somehow trapped in the incredible color of his eyes so richly brought up by the bright color of his flaming mane. Something about this teacher, this person… this man was so different, as if a thousand lives worth of knowledge seeped through his veins. Maybe it was because of her young age, the little she saw of life, but within this man was something that appealed to her, loudly. She could feel it, deep inside her, setting her heart into a long stride of enthusiastic drum solo.

"I…" she stammered, at lost.

Meanwhile, Kenshin had not withdrawn his hand, it hung there; warm on her shoulder, as if glued there. It should have been odd; they should have felt out of place, somehow doing something wrong, awkward and clumsy. Wasn't it how it always turned out between student and teacher? But this felt, and it was the only oddity about it, very comfortable, easing them both. The golden warmth of the sun reached the room as time passed and both had yet to move. The silence was as cozy as an old patchwork comforter, heavy upon you but so comfortable, pining you in warmth and bliss instead of making you feel confined or caged.

Their eyes locked, trapped in a precious moment when time would slip unnoticed, passing by gently, almost musical-like. It was amazing, how without words, everything seemed to peaceful, calm and easy. It was a feeling both of them rarely ever experienced, and at this moment, she understood exactly what he meant, everything about words and their lack of importance. It was so clear, nothing could really describe how this moment, flitting and fragile, had so deeply moved them both. In barely a ticking of clock, everything and nothing was said, silence speaking for them both.

And just as it had become, it was gone along with the horrid shriek of the bell. Kenshin blinked, has time really passed so fast? Why the most precious of things seemed to always fade so soon? Outside of their bubble, students and teachers rushed about to their daily routine of education and minds hungry -- and not so eager for others-- for knowledge. His hand slid down her shoulder, a faint smile adorning his warm feature, fingers lingering a few seconds before his arm fell to his side, already turning to leave. The room has been cleaned, not perfectly but the job had been done, it was ready to receive the flow of eager youth on this early middle week morning.

As he reached the exit, Kaoru's classmates were already joining her in, chatting over petty subject, their youth sparkling, and innocence obvious in their lack of awareness in the future and what it could hold for them. She sat there, blinking, watching the redheaded man leave and realized that, somehow, during the short time they just spent together, something changed.

A small load of mobile sheets was shoved flat in front of him, forcing the young teacher out of his reverie. He looked up to see a girl smiling smugly at him before returning to her chair, as if proud of her deed, he frowned. A quick glance at the clock hanging above the black board was enough to bring him completely back to reality. He stood, eyeing his class, many of the eager teenagers still frantically looking through their dictionary, trying to get rid of as many mistakes as possible, most of them truly aiming for the best grades, the rest simply slacking, and their work scamp, not much caring even though the white exams were drawing closer every day. A furtive look to his right showed him that Kaoru had finally come in terms with her blockage, her graceful hand scraping the paper in black inking, the color not as rich as that of her hair. There was a twinge at his facial muscles, softening his feature, glad the girl would finish in time.

"Fifteen minutes left class," he declared watching as a wave of near panic shook his audience. "Those of you who are finished can give me their copies and you may return home early. You deserve it."

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Yahiko was feeling bored. Sanosuke and he had come to the gates of Kyoto High, waiting for Kenshin to make his exit and follow them for the weekly meal they shared. To the young turbulent boy, the only decent intake of food he had. His uncle did not have much of cooking ability, fish being the only thing eatable the tall brunette could come up with, least to say it did not exactly hit his taste buds. Grinding the dirt with the tip of his new shoes impatiently, the spiky-haired boy shoved his hand into his pocket; stomach pestering over the little it was given this afternoon. Then his brown eyes widen upon a delicious discovery, a magnificent treasure buried deep into his pants' pocket. Excited, he quickly tug his hand out of the relatively tight space and there, in his palm, lay an old, partly melt chocolate bar.

With eagerness only children had, he ripped the shiny envelop and buried the treat deep in his mouth, not taking his time to savor the rich taste of the chocolate mixed with nougat and creamy caramel. Hearing his nephew's squeal of delight, Sanosuke turned his head in the youth's direction envy quickly overtaking his warm brown eyes.

"What's that in your mouth brat?" he spat.

Yahiko froze and gave his older companion a death glare, mouth full of the sweetness. He was ready to defend it with his life. "It's mine!"

Raising an eyebrow, he took a step forward, a smug grin playing on his lips. "Where did you get that?"

"None of your business!" declared Yahiko, high on defensive, hiding the precious bit of food from the part-time gambler, box-instructor and bouncer.

"I don't recall giving you any money…"

Yahiko growled under his breath like a dog jealously protecting a bone. "I had some saving…" the truth was, he had no idea how he got it.

Looking at the kid skeptically, spying on the candy with great envy, he took yet another threatening step forward. "Really… money flows out of your hand just as easily as through mine!" Sano pointed a finger at the desired morsel of sugary goodness and declared vehemently, "It's mine!" before leaping on the boy.

A fierce battle issued, a cloud of dust engulfing the friendly duo -- as friendly as the crocodile can be to the fish in his mouth. Students passing by to return to their home gave the two a strange look, a few girls giggling at the older one's behavior and there was also some cheering from mocking boys and girls. However, soon enough, Sanosuke was triumphant, candy bar in mouth, his foot pinning the poor kid to the dirty concrete savoring the marvelous taste of victory -- today's flavor, nougat, caramel and chocolate -- taunting the poor boy viciously.

"Give it back!" yelled to poor defeated Yahiko, batting his hands about looking like a fish caught out of water and under the palmed foot of a pelican.

Swallowing his bite, Sanosuke grinned. "No wa--…"

He never could finish his sentence as a foot connected with his jaw, sending him tumbling a few feet away, still standing though. The dark haired man glared at whoever dared to crash his fun and his gaze met with blue fire raging on a pretty girl's face. He smirked, nursing his aching cheek with a steady hand. The girl was rather small in stature, but the force in the kick she had sent his way was surprising, not enough to knock him off, but it was surprising none the less.

"Calm down Missy."

Her eyes widen and fury was clearly written all over her face, too bad he could not read that well. "Give him back his candy bar." Her eyes leveled with his threateningly.

Fate has this strange thing about it that no body understood. When one thinks they would never see again, they get shoved right into their face, when one believes the world wide and full of people, a place easy to blend in, they always stumble across acquaintance of some sort. Yahiko stood up, feeling angry, his ego bruised badly, and when his eyes fell on his '_savior_' all hell broke loose.

"Mind your own businesses, old **_hag_**!" he snarled.

Kaoru blinked and turned her attention toward the kid she thought she was helping. As soon as she recognized the bratty face, her cheek turned a frightening shade of red as anger overtook the young woman.

"You!" she yelled, pointing a finger at the kid who simply smiled smugly.

Sanosuke was a bit at lost watching as his nephew and the violent girl both glared angrily at each other. He blinked several times, not understanding the abrupt change. Was she not aiming for him in the first place? The stinging of his cheek reminded him so, but now it seemed that she would beat the brat to a bloody pulp without any hesitation. The tall man smirked; she was not the only one whose nerves could easily snap when near Yahiko.

"I can take care of myself!" claimed the child.

"Had I know it was you, believe me, I wouldn't have moved even a finger," venom was dripping in her every word.

"Girls can't fight anyway," he spewed acidly.

"Come again!"

She was brandishing her fist menacingly, anger and fury mingling in her pretty eyes. Whoever that girl was, she had spunk. Sanosuke liked her on the spot. Maybe he just found himself an ally in his quest on unnerving his pupil. The tension between the two was palpable; the air electrified high in anger voltage. So much so that the brunette could swear he saw a spark. If no one intervened anytime soon, they would be at each other's throat within a matter of seconds. Sagara Sanosuke was thrilled with the idea, but sincerely hoping none of them would get hurt… too much.

"I said girl's **_can't_**_ fight_!" he taunted again, stressing the last word so it would struck deeper.

"Why you little brat!"

Losing her temper, she charged, her mind set resolutely in only giving him a scratch or two. Her hand rose high above his head, powerful, aiming for his cheek. Yahiko braced himself, closing his eyes and waited for the impact… that never came. Opening one brown eye, he saw near his face the hand that should have smack him, slightly trembling like a leaf about to fall off a tree. He looked up to see the girl's furious red face, her lips thin and pined, her eyes menacing, a dangerous glint in their blue depth. Her chest rose and fell, trying to contain her rage. Why she had stopped eluded him. Sanosuke was just as flabbergasted; to his point of view Yahiko had deserved the blow.

Taking one last deep intake, her voice harsh, last remains of her anger. "If I hit you, I would be playing the same game. Don't get me wrong, you deserved it, but it doesn't mean it's right to hit." She graced an icy glare in the direction of the tall spiky-headed man to her left. The last part of her speech seemed to be more for him than the kid.

"You're right, Miss Kaoru," said a gentle voice behind her.

A light blush spread across her cheek as recognition set in her mind. "M.. Mr. Himura.." turning her stunned expression behind her, she saw her teacher.

"Kenshin," he smiled before continuing. "I keep telling Sano not to play into his game. You're the first one who seems to understand."

Sanosuke turned beat-red though weather it was because of shame or not was hard to tell. "Say that again after one day with the brat."

Yahiko frown, displeasure clear on his young face, it seemed he was ready to tear the giant of a man apart. Kenshin only smiled, Kaoru not really understanding the meaning of this all, her confusion flagrant for all to see. Sanosuke chuckled, keeping the murderous youth at bay, one large hand covering most of his head, the smaller one waving his arms, hands fisted in hope to hit his uncle.

"I'm Sagara Sanosuke and the fly batter over there's Miyojin Yahiko, but I've got the feeling you two met before."

Blinking the girl nodded. "Yes… a few weeks ago."

Grinning, Sanosuke turned to his long time friend. "You ready to go?"

Yahiko was heaving, and after some more fruitless swings at his tormenter, he gave up and turned a beaming face toward the red-headed teacher. "Where're going to eat today?"

Kenshin smiled amiably at the kid and walked toward the old rusted thing he called a car. "To the Shirobeko." He declared.

Kaoru cocked her head to the side, blinking. "My aunt's restaurant?"

The teacher shook his head affirmatively. "I heard the clientele was going down because of that new big American restaurant that opened right beside it. I just think we should encourage those who need it."

The black haired girl smiled softly, thankful to his kindness. "Maybe I'll see you there tonight. I'm lending a hand."

"May we offer you a ride there, Miss Kaoru?" offered the small man.

Yahiko seemed about to protest, his mouth agape and ready to shout a loud protest.

"No, thank you. I need to go home and get a few things first," explained the young woman.

"Alright then, we'll see you there."

She acquiesced, turning to leave, pulling her heavy old backpack over her shoulders. Kenshin unlocked the door, inviting his friends inside. Yahiko jumped in, relieved the girl was not joining them, he fastened his seat belt happily, the prospect of a good meal shoving away more than one problem to the back of his mind. Sanosuke stood beside the car, watching the school girl strode away. He had to admit, she was very different from the rest of the students he had met since Kenshin started to teach 5 years ago. But something was nagging at him, some sort of warning sign flashing bright above her. He stole a glance at the red-headed who was already inserting the key into the ignition, fighting with the old engine to get the darn machine working.

"Who's she?"

"Miss Kaoru?" innocently inquired the purple-eyed man. Sano concur with his head. "One of my student. Very talented young woman, that she is."

The tall man curled his body so he could fit in the rather small transport. "You seem pretty close, closer than you ever been to a student before." There was not exactly a tone of reproach, but a faint warning seemed to be floating around his words.

"Whatever you mean?" eluded the young teacher, pulling the car into motion once the reluctant engine finally came into function.

"Kenshin…" warned his friend.

"I think you're imagining things, that you are."

To Sanosuke, there was a blatant doubt in his mind. Sighing, he turned his head to the window, watching the world pass by. He only wished his friend would not get into trouble. Stealing a mournful glance at the young boy sitting behind him, he sighed. They already went through so much.

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**_I remember that I was watching Finding Nemo and The Emperor's New Groove quite frequently when I wrote this chapter. I also had a very interesting conversation with my grand-mother (I lived there six months in 2004) about passion and Catholicism (am an atheist of some sort and she is a fervent believer). I suppose the combination of cartoons, comedy and nearly philosophical conversations inspired the comical tone of this chapter. It also marked another turn. While I already knew the story was going to grow more complicated, it's only then that I realized there would be more then the 13 chapters I had envisioned. I still had a vague idea of the themes I meant to use in this story and the turns I wanted to take. I must confess that this chapter is one of my favorite. It's the first chapter with 'real' interaction between Kenshin and Kaoru and the turning point toward what would develop into a very interesting relationship. It was also a nice change to write humor for once._**

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**_Eden_****_'s Epitaph_**

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_Edited by Merlock12 and Guardian Forever_


	6. Ocean Wide On Not So Classic Painting

**Warnings: Mild swearing. **

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**_Honeysuckles and Moonlight Shreds_**

_By __Eden__'s Epitaph_

Chapter 5: _Ocean Wide on Not So Classic Painting _

Nearly three days. She was working on this irritation for nearly three days and nothing good seemed to come out of it. No amount of efforts could do, she was stuck. Kaoru sighed, taking a deep breath a second after, trying to calm the frustration that was swelling dangerously inside for the last two hours. Releasing the breath that should have soothed her, the young woman cried out, throwing, out of irritation, her pencil, far, out of her sight. The object crashed on the far back wall of her dishevelled bedroom, leaving a small dent on the soft cast near her bed post. The innocent pen bounced on the night table and rolled off, hitting the floor behind the table with a small 'clack'.

Her fists curled tightly on both sides of the sheet of paper spread on her rumbled down desk, she glared the assignment, her eyes blazing fire, willing to burn the darn thing, source of all her problems. Gritting her teeth, seething some intelligible words that could have been malevolent curses, Kaoru tried to focus her thoughts. It seemed that her mind was playing hide and seek with her, forcing her into a writing torpor that seemed to lack a cure. It was not that she could not think at all, it was more like most of her thoughts were directed toward something so much less important than this darn science project. Further more, that unimportant thing was what made her angry because, not only was it irrelevant, it was foolish and utterly insane. At least she forced herself to believe it was.

The May passed rather slowly but still summer break was rearing in, for the joy of most of her classmates. A nice three weeks out of school with only summer academicals work to worry about, although most of them did not plan to even start before the crucial last day before school would start over again. However all this did not matter considering that Kaoru had no projects what so ever for the up-coming vacation. She felt desperate, like a fool lost in the middle of an annual genius gathering.

Sighing, Kaoru turned her head toward the window watching as the tree in front of her window swayed along the soft warm late May breeze.

"Maybe..." she mused, lost in thoughts watching the clouds gather.

Such a beautiful Saturday afternoon; it would be a shame to spend it inside. Gathering her homework, shoving the whole into her worn out backpack in a messy heap, she tied her hair, done a nice blue ribbon and fled her room in a flash. She stumped down the corridor, hearing her aunt Sae babbling incomprehensively on the phone to one of her over excited friend, and she stormed out of the apartment and down the stair-case into the street. Once out, she felt as if her mind was finally cooling down and she smiled up at the clear cerulean sky, taking a deep breath and readying herself to walk away from the confines of the dang house.

"Kaoru! Where are you going? You have homework to do!" said a voice as a window was pulled to an overture.

"I need to clear my mind. I brought my stuff with me. I'll get it done before I come back, promise." Explained the teenager, her back turned to the building, not wishing to see the disapproving look on Sae's usually smiling face.

"I'll take your words for it, but be back before dinner."

"Yes!"

Kaoru smiled, free at last! The wind gently grazed her skin and hair, the sun warmed her cheeks ever so softly, she was outside and it was wonderful. What a grandiose idea she had. Humming some light hearted song the raven haired girl paced herself in a child-like walk, skip walking at the rhythm of her mental radio. Through the last month of her staying in Kyoto, she had plenty of time to discover her side of the City of Temples. The part of the city she lived in was not exactly the wealthiest but there were still a few nice little parks kept untouched and clean. Her personal favourite, a few blocks down the main street, next to the poorest district where the crumbling brown building marked the line. Not exactly a peace of paradise.

It was a relatively large park, with swings and slides and a rusty merry-go-round that protested every time children would ride the old thing. A bunch of benches circled around the play ground area, there also was a dirt trail embraced on each side by cherry trees, clumsily trying to make a straight line. It was the only potable outdoors resting area in the neighbourhood and she enjoyed to spend some time there after school. Watching kids play and run around as if they had no care in the world -- not that they really had cares to begin with -- always warmed her heart and made her forget her own problems.

Reaching her destination she settled down at her usual spot under an old oak, the only oak tree around and the largest tree in the park. The large leaves sang as they danced on the branches as she sat her back to the rough barks of the trunk. Kaoru closed her eyes breathing in the woody sent of her surroundings and let the children's laughter that echoed all over from the playground lull her gently. The air was warm and the sun was hot, but where she lay under the large shadow of the towering tree, it seemed to cool down to pleasurable warmth. The young woman could stay like this forever, away from the frustration of her life, away from her aunts, away from the god forsaken apartment and restaurant, away from all torment.

Well, almost…

"Watch out!"

The thunderous cry jolted Kaoru out of her reveries and she open her blue eyes. Just in time, it seemed, to see a white and black round object crash into her face. The force of the impact caused her head to hit the hard wood and instead of ball-like things, she saw stars. Dizziness and pain shout through her skull in a dull ring.

"Ouch... ouch, ouch..." mumbled Kaoru raising a hand to her throbbing nose, feeling around to make sure there was no brake or blood.

"Oh God! Are you alright Miss?" came a gentle, and slightly worried, male voice.

Kaoru heard his footsteps getting closer in a rush and she could hear the mischievous laughter of a boy in the distance as well as the calm reprimanding voice of a woman. Sounded as if she was scolding the child but he, on the other hand, did not seem to care and laugh even harder.

"Miss... Miss, are you alright?"

"I'm fine..." she replied grumpily, her voice a bit nasal and muffled by her hand.

"I'm so sorry, can you stand..."

A hand was at her shoulder helping her up gently. She gripped the helping arm, trying to get herself back on balanced, her aching head was hard to keep up straight and the world seemed to be spinning not so merrily.

"What the hell happened..." She muttered in a nearly drunken daze -- though she never actually experienced it.

"My apologies… We were playing with a soccer ball but Yahiko shoot harder than expected..."

"Yahiko...?" Kaoru looked up and her eyes met a fiery mane and a gentle yet concerned pair of purple orbs. She gulped. "M... Mr. Himura...?"

"Ah? Miss Kaoru..." He blinked, registering who the girl actually was.

He had not recognized her at the first glance. When one sees someone every day wearing the same thing... should someone expect them to put a name on a frame when dressed differently? He observed as Kaoru regained her composure, dusting her knee-length blue summer skirt and white tank top. It was quite different from the formal school uniform and the rather informal teddy-bear boxer short and _Hello Kitty_ t-shirt he saw her wear once. She looked less of a high school student and more of the young woman she was.

Kaoru's sapphire eyes scanned the park, looking for the spiky headed little demon, fire burning deep in her iris. The brat was going to pay! Or so she thought, until her eyes settled on a perfectly calm and composed woman that radiated kindness and understanding right beside the little spawn from hell. The woman had long ebony tresses neatly knot at the base of her slender neck, her pale face looked at the laughing child with stern obsidian eyes that inspired elegance as well as authority. That woman, to Kaoru's eyes was the embodiment of Japanese perfection. In a second all her hatred drained from her brain and all she could see was that beautiful woman.

"Miss Kaoru?"

Said girl blinked and looked up at her teacher, a bit fazed and lost. "Um? What?"

"I asked you if you would be fine." The redheaded repeated, smiling gently.

"Yes… yes Mr. Himura, don't worry about me... I just... Sorry, I think I should sit down if you don't mind."

"Of course not... Would you like something to wash your face too?" asked the man as he led her to a near-by bench.

She nodded, grabbing her bag, the aching of her head coming back full force as soon as she started moving... along with her anger toward the hateful brat.

"Yahiko, would you get the bottle of water that's in the car." He ordered the kid.

"Why me?" whined the miniature devil.

"Because," explained Kenshin, turning to face the child, "It's your fault if she's in pain."

"But it was an accident. It's her damn fault for being in the way to begin with!" argued Yahiko with his early age logic.

"What?" yelled Kaoru. "It's your aim that's bad, little brat!"

"I'm not little!"

Was she not twice his size and, surely, just as many times stronger?

"Yahiko..." he threatened.

"It's alright Kenshin, I'll fetch it." Said the woman in a soft voice that seemed to lack a bit on the emotion side, but still it was melodious to Kaoru's ears.

The red headed man sighed. "Thank you Tomoe... Can you bring something to clean her face as well?"

She nodded and walked away, leaving Kenshin and Yahiko with a slightly dazed Kaoru. The girl let her head fall backward to rest on the back of her seat, a hand going to her forehead, eyes closed. A Saturday that promised only perfection was starting to turn into a nightmare. She moaned in frustration and pain, her other hand joining the first, feeling the dirt on her face. She felt like a fool, a dirty fool to be precise now that she could feel the result of the soccer ball attack. She felt the bench slump a bit as Kenshin sat beside her, his eyes observing her attentively, making sure she was fine.

"Does your head hurt?" he asked, his ears not deaf to her mumbled complain.

"Just a bit... It'll be fine, don't worry."

She heard the grass crushed to the ground as Yahiko walked closer, feeling the radiation of his mischief as she would the sun's heat. Kaoru cracked an eye open to glare at the kid, furious. It seemed each encounter with the spiky-headed demon were painful and frustrating.

"What do you want?" she spat.

He stared at her for a while, noticing the red mark the ball left on her otherwise pretty face. He did feel a bit guilty for hurting her, even though it was not really his fault. He had to admit that he had recognized her the moment he saw the girl sit under the shade of the old oak, and he did throw the ball in her direction on purpose. However, still young and unaware of the potential of his strength, Yahiko did not expect to hit her in the face. Her stomach or even her legs would have been just fine. Just enough to annoy her...

"It's just..." his voice sounded sheepish and Kaoru withdrew her hands to better see him. She almost felt sorry for the boy and was about to forgive him, until... "Man… you look so much uglier with that red lump right in the middle of your face. And I'm not talking about the mud!"

"Yahiko, I think that's enough foolishness for the day." Tomoe's dark eyes were strained on the boy's back. She only just returned from the parking lot.

"But..." he stuttered in a weak defence.

"Get your ball. I'm taking you back home." said the calm woman, taking the kid by the shoulder and starting to walk. "Kenshin..." she added, her back turned to him.

"Hum?" The teacher caught the bottle of water thrown his way along with some paper-towels.

"I trust you'll drive this young lady back home. I'll take care of Yahiko and make sure Sano takes his responsibility as a guardian, this time."

Kenshin chuckled at the idea of a Sanosuke trying to act like the real parent he obviously was not. "I'll see you tonight then."

Tomoe shook her head as she kept walking. "I'll be gone in two hours. I'll be back in two months..."

Kaoru was slightly confused by the exchange, watching the elegant woman walking away, the 10-years-old with her, a firm hand on his shoulder, guiding him with authority toward his home, the ball now nested under his arm. The teenager turned her head toward her teacher, question marks all over her pretty face. He was damping a piece of paper, his purple eyes shown nothing in particular, but she could feel a tension in him. Taking the offered cleansing piece, the girl blinked before pulling it to her face and washed away the trace of the earlier incident.

"Who... Who was that woman?" she asked a bit confused.

"My wife..." was the whispered reply.

"Oh..."

It was not obvious, but Kaoru could feel it, somehow. Was she imagining things? It would be odd if it was so, but the girl thought she could feel some sort of tension between her teacher and his wife. What seemed strange to the young woman was that Tomoe appeared to be everything a man would dream of, although there was this… detached coldness about her. Kenshin seemed to have the perfect wife. So why did the couple appeared so…. So… mismatched? It was strange, it was unsettling.

Shrugging, Kaoru washed her face the best she could without a mirror. She could feel the particle of dirt grinding her skin and knew her attempts were fruitless. Kenshin peered down at her and smiled gently, taking the paper towel away from her hands. He turned her head in his direction, lavender gaze locked on the redden lump between her eyes. Carefully, softly, almost tenderly, he dabbed the morsel of washing paper on her face, getting rid of the filth. His ministration was precise and painless, so gentle and caring. The teenager found herself fascinated by the way he looked at her, somehow unaware of her muted observation.

She had had plenty of time to observe the young teacher in class, just like every other girl he taught, and Kaoru was not blind to his unusual beauty. Most of her female classmates babbled endlessly about his physical attributes, all agreeing the 28 years old man to be one the most handsome man around. There was this group of girls that Kaoru called the 'Himura Groupies', gathering information about their Writing teacher, and having discussions about him. She even caught a glimpse of snap-shots one of those girl made of Kenshin. The attention was strong on the red-headed man, but he turned every invitation down, every letters were sent back, kept untouched with a word of apology. Kenshin was not rude, always polite, but always keeping a safe distance from everyone else.

The raven-haired girl was not blind, indeed, and could see how handsome he was. He had delicate but manly features that could make her sigh if she thought too much about it. His long crimson hair, always pulled into a loose knot about his nape, could cause one to wonder if the feel was a soft and smooth at they appeared. His beautiful violet eyes mysterious and so deep a color, one could easily get lost trying to sound them. Kenshin's appearance was captivating, but he was her teacher. That was as far as it went… as it should go. Thought those girls…

"There, you're face is all clean. I hope it did not hurt too much, that I do." He whispered his face so close to hers that Kaoru could feel his breath.

The girl had yet to realise that Kenshin had finished and she was still staring at him. Blushing madly, she turned her head away, uttering a breathy thank you.

"It's the least I can do." She could catch his smiling face from the corner of her eyes. "Does your head still hurt?"

She shook her head no, taking the offered plastic bottle, half-full of fresh water. "Thanks..."

Kaoru felt a bit uncomfortable. She toyed with the bottle nervously, her feet twisting in the dirt, making strange crushing sound as the worn out soles of her brown shoes grazed the dusty ground, the tips of her feet meeting. Her face still turned the opposite direction; the blue-eyed girl pulled the water container to her lips and took a slow swing of the cool liquid. Kenshin felt odd, watching her trembling although still charmingly graceful movements. He had to admit, she was an attractive young woman. He shook his head, trying to chasse the thought out of his mind. He frown, wondering over something, then looked at her again with a soft smile.

"What you say if I offer you an ice cream cone to make up for Yahiko's behaviour?"

She looked up, her blue eyes somewhat shocked and then, slowly, she smiled. "It would be nice, thank you."

He helped her up, taking the young girl by the hand. "I know of a nice place, but we'll have to use my car. Do you mind?"

She shook her head, gripping her bag, the thought of science project far from her, and the request of her aunt long forgotten as she fallowed her teacher.

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"What do you mean he kicked a ball right into some girl's face?"

Sanosuke was furious. No, he was beyond that, he was mad. The brat had retaliate, once again, hurting someone on purpose, he was sure, even though the little devil sworn it was an accident. Everything Yahiko did was far from being accidental; Sano came to learn that a long time ago. The tall man was aware that it probably had something to do with the tragic disappearance of the kid's mother, but still, he did not understand why his nephew sought problems and complications so adamantly. It was as if the kid had a sick relationship with trouble.

"That's what he did. And this is not talking about his rude comments to the poor girl." explained Tomoe.

"It's her fault, she was in the way!" tried Yahiko for his own defence, completely out of believable arguments.

"Don't give me that shit." Spat Sanosuke.

"Sano! I think you should use a better language if you want the boy to behave. You're making a poor example. Do you want the child service to take him back. You know they are still on your case."

"I know… I know..." Said the giant of a man, his face grim. "We all know I'm no parent material..."

"That's what you say. All I'm asking of you is that you make sure he doesn't do it again." Informed Tomoe stealing a glance at her wrist watch and frowned. "I should go. My flight is in two hours..." She turned to exit the small apartment. "I suggest you ground him for a while. Take your responsibility for once." With that she was out the door.

"It's not as if I'm not trying..." muttered the man, sighing.

Sanosuke turned to the kid in question, who glared at him in return. The contest began; the first to blink was going to regret it, dearly. The exchange was violent, moist slowly draining out of both their brown eyes, turning the world into a blurry. Still fire burnt bright and none of them was willing to give up. Tension was great until... Yahiko blinked, unable to stand it any longer, his face turning gruff as he looked away, crossing his arm over his chest. His guardian grinned, putting a large hand over the child's small shoulder, covering it all.

"You'll be stuck in here for 3 weeks..."

The boy's chocolate eyes widened in disbelieve, protest clear on his face as he opened his mouth to voice them. "But summer break is in only one week! I can't be stuck inside for the beginning of summer! What about school's summer visit to..."

"You'll have to forget about it. That and TV and video games. You eat, you do your homework and you go to bed... Curfew at 7:30 pm..."

"What!" he was boiling inside. "You don't have the right to do that!"

"Yes I do and God damn it that's all you deserve." boomed Sano, letting go of the kid. "Yahiko, I'm through with that God forsaken attitude of yours. We've told you many times, warned you, that next time would be worse. Don't you listen to us? Don't you understand that this is leading you nowhere? Man... Don't you get it? If you keep acting that way they're going to take you back and find you a new foster home. Is that what you want?"

Yahiko closed his mouth, furry in his eyes, feeling like the whole world was against him. "It's not my fault people are so stupid."

The spiky headed man glared at his charge. "It's not them..." he was about to add something when the phone rang.

Cursing, he stomped toward the machine that came, he was sure of it, directly from hell. He picked it up, uttering a grumpy greeting and then his face changed and his way of speaking became more polite, even the annoyance in his face disappeared.

"Yes sir… but..." there was a long pause, his eyes narrowed slightly. "I know but..." it seemed he could not argue at all, each of his protest cut short by his interlocutor. "No… Not it's not that, it's just that Yahiko is..." he frowned once again he could not express himself. "Alright, I'll find someone. I'll be there in an hour."

Yahiko stared at his uncle, not understanding fully well what he had to do with the conversation. Sanosuke turned his head to look at him, seeing the confusion on the boy's face, the older man sighed, shaking his head.

"Get your stuff ready. Bring books and homework only. I'm taking you to Katsu."

"What? To that tasteless moron? Why?"

"Boss called..." he explained ignoring Yahiko's rude comment toward his childhood friend.

"But…"

"No protest, kick your ass in gears and get ready. We leave in five minutes."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

The tearing cries of the seagulls were echoing all over the place in a somewhat pleasant way, as long as the omnivorous birds kept their beaks away from the passer-bys as well as their food. Kaoru was sitting on a block of cement near the edge of the harbour, watching the brownish water rippling with the wind and waves, the sun reflected on it like millions of shining diamonds. The saline air tickled her nose and she smiled, closed her eyes and took a deep breath. The coast was clear, no clouds in the horizon, a perfect day to set sail, even though she was no sailor, nor had she ever been on a boat for the matter. The young woman had always enjoyed docks and the marine breeze that blew near the ocean. It was calming and inspiring.

"Here you go, chocolate dipped vanilla ice cream for you." Said Kenshin, handing her the cone he bought for her. "You'll see, these are the best in the city." He added, taking a sit beside her, his own wild berry ice treat in hand.

"Thank you, Mr. Himura."

"I told you before," he said shaking his head softly, "I rather you call me Kenshin when we are not in class. It makes me feel like an old man." He laughed.

She smiled, nodding. "Alright, Kenshin."

There was a moment of silence with only the sounds the bystanders chitchat and merchants tries at luring clients with their ready made buying speech to fill the environment. It was lovely to be at a harbour once again. It was so lively, Kaoru could hear children laughing in the distance where some attraction had been set a few days ago for some unknown festival that was held before then start of summer holydays. Last time Kenshin had set foot on the woody trails of Kyoto's docks was a few days after his marriage. Before that they used to come very often, him, Sano and sister Uki, Tomoe and Akira. They had been a joyous bunch of teenagers. If only they had known to stay out of trouble.

Kaoru saw as Kenshin's face frowned, his eyes shadowed, lost in deep thinking and remembrance, something that, she could see, still ached him deeply. She had come halfway through her sweet, observing the activity surrounding her in awe, when her eyes settled on the man sitting beside her. She grew worried for some reason, somehow missing the smile that was usually on his lips.

"Kenshin?"

He blinked and looked up as if emerging from a deep trance. Shaking his head, he smiled, though the light of it not quite reaching his eyes. It was all she needed to become truly worried. It was clear something was troubling him, even though she had no idea what it was. How the young woman wished she had the power to help, in some way, somehow. She traced a line in the dirt with her right foot, forcing her mind to think of something interesting to lighten the man's mood. However, now that she had his attention, she had no idea what to talk about. She blushed, at a lost of word, feeling stupid.

"Um... Do you like your ice cream?" she wanted to beat herself up, of all the things she could have said, she had to say something this... this... pointless.

"Yes, it tastes very good." He could see her discomfort and it made him smile. "Would you care to walk a bit?"

She nodded, getting to her feet, already down at the crispy part of her icy meal. She followed the redhead around, down the wooden ducks where commercial and private boats lined in the harbour. They passed a lively group of young children chasseing a dozen of sea birds around, the animals loudly voicing their protest and flipping their grey-tipped white wings. Kaoru smiled, remembering doing the same when she was a kid herself.

They passed by a few stands full of foreign items and food with colorful merchants shouting to whoever wanted to hear the values and qualities of their merchandises. It made some sort of melodious cacophony, bringing around the colors of diversity. Her discomfort was slowly slipping away and Kaoru took more confident steps to stand right next to her teacher, gazing left and right, up and down, not willing to miss a single opportunity, a single spark of the world buzzing with life around her.

Kenshin smiled, feeling some sort of warmth filling his heart as he observed his silent companion discovering Kyoto's Harbour with large, luminous blue eyes as wide as those of a child living first experiences. It was a charming trait of hers, this amazement that shown so brightly into those beautiful eyes, glistering magically with the radiant mid-day sun. It was a pleasant walk, the silence not heavy between them as they simply strode along, such as two old friends would. The idea was rather unsettling but none the less heart warming.

The young woman had her eyes glued to an amusingly shaped cloud right above her head, a giggle barely suppressed as she made out the grotesque form, her complete attention drawn to that single point. So much, in fact, that she was forgetting most everything around her, until she hit something hard and stumbled backward. The young high school student's head was spinning slightly, her thoughts confused as her brain tried to register just what happened. She blinked and looked up to see Kenshin's hand on her shoulder, trying to stabilize her. A lump formed in her throat when, with a slightly fearful eye, she recognized the person she had just stumbled on.

"Are you alright, Miss Kaoru?" Inquire Kenshin, concerned.

Kaoru wanted to curse, the day seemed to hold an incredible about of misadventures for her and she was starting to get rather sick of it. Somehow, it was only the point of the iceberg.

Kaoru's eyes grew wide, wider than one would think humanly possible. Standing right in front of her was one of the girls of her class, Yamazaki Rumiko. The girl had a piercing dark gaze that judged without knowing and she had a grudge for the black haired teenager ever since she won the preliminary poetry contest that would choose three students of her school to enter to nation-wide writing contest.

It had been nearly only three weeks ago when Kenshin had announced the contest to the class in large details. Each student had been encouraged to give their candidature and write a poem, a short story or an essay on a subject of their choosing. There had not been many to sign up in poetry, the genre not as popular to the young folks as the last two. However, Rumiko had been one of the few to battle with much verve for the title of poetry representative of Kyoto High. She already had a dislike in Kaoru, seeing as she was somewhat close to Kenshin and the girl -- Rumiko -- being one of those 'Himura Groupies'. The dark-eyed girl had been hasty in judging the result unfair and biased, accusing Kaoru of buying the favours of the judge who, unfortunately, had been their Writing and Literature teacher. Yamazaki Rumiko had made it her goal for the rest of her life to pester Kaoru at every given occasion.

"Watch it, two face!" spat Rumiko, then blinked and gave her classmate a smug grin. "Well... if it isn't Miss Puddle!"

"Yamazaki... Nice to see you." Answered the blue eyed girl as politely as her growing anger would allow. The sarcasm was dripping from her mouth such as the drool out of a starving animal.

"What are you doing around here? Needing new ways to drench yourself?" Her nose was high up, regarding her classmate with a haughty and cold glare.

"Good afternoon Miss Yamazaki." Greeted Kenshin, letting go of Kaoru's shoulder. "Out to enjoy the fresh marine air as well?"

Kaoru flinched, her mind going over the millions of possible reaction the snobbish girl could have and loathing them all.

"Mr. Himura?" The girl was taken aback, a blush going to her cheeks as her eyes fell on the young teacher. "What a surprise!" Her tone of voice has gone from harsh to such a disgustingly sweet level.

The blue eyed girl wanted to gag, sickened by Rimioko's fake voice.

Unknown to the two girls, the teacher's reaction had been quite similar, although well hidden.

"Fine day is it not." Kenshin was polite none the less.

"Yes, very much so." She gave him a sultry smile and for some obscure reason the raven haired girl felt like struggling her. "What brings you on the pier?" Rumiko gave her 'rival' a dark glare.

"Some unfortunate misshape of my best friend's nephew, I offered Miss Kamiya an ice cream cone as a consolation." He explained.

This made the said girl grit her teeth, suddenly feeling like a child who needed a treat when one sought forgiveness from them. Indisputably, there would be repercussions later on. Rumiko was not one to forget a detail that would allow her to tease, or rather torment, the exchanged student.

"Rumiko, who are you talking to?" Asked an ageing man who seemed to have appeared out of nowhere.

"Father, I'd like you to meet with my Writing and Literature teacher, Mr. Himura Kenshin." Said the girl, completely ignoring Kaoru.

"Ah, the infamous red-headed teacher of Kyoto High. I have heard much of you from my daughter. It is a pleasure to finally meet you." The man sounded not that much pleased, a slight bit haughty, just as his daughter had acted toward the blue-eyed. "It is quite unusual hair color for a Japanese man."

Kaoru frowned immediately understanding the reason of the man's distant and arrogant words. It was clear now that he, as many of his generation, despised those who were not fully blooded Japanese.

"My mother was Irish." Explained the teacher, his pleasant smile never fading, seemingly unfazed by the unpleasant tone of the older man.

"I see..."

There was a moment of silence, heavy and lingering, unwanted, defusing uneasiness into both Kaoru and Kenshin, though her emotions were more transparent then that of the young man.

"And you are?" asked Mr. Yamazaki turning his gaze toward the blue-eyed girl.

"Kamiya Kaoru. I am a classmate of Rumiko." Her voice was strong, but she was feeling rather nervous and she wanted cursed herself for that uneasiness. It was unwelcome and unwanted; a sign of weakness she had promised herself never to feel again. She could not help but dislike the man such as she did his daughter the second the otherwise pretty girl had opened her mouth.

"Charmed." Courtly replied the man, his eyes observing her thoroughly. "Are you two going to the Marine Festival?" His voice sounded disapproving of whatever would be the reason of the two of them to be at the same place together unless it would have been in a classroom.

"I am afraid not," answered Kenshin, his face a mask of companionship and politeness that astounded his companion. "We were only enjoying the warm afternoon before I would accompany Miss Kamiya back home."

The red head disliked the accusing glare Mr. Yamazaki shot him, apparently shameless of the apparent silent accusation. Kaoru was well aware of the misconception of the hastily judging man. It seemed that the apple never fell far from the three, indeed.

"And you don't think it odd for a teacher to be with one of his female student out of class?"

Ah! There it was the words behind the ready-made judgement. Kaoru could feel her temper rise. She was astounded, however, to see how much Kenshin could hold such a placid exterior in front of such man. She would have been shouting at displeasing old man long ago had she not remembered to honour her father with the best of her behaviour. She idly mused upon the probability of her teacher having a similar pledge.

"I have no problem with being amiable to my students. I leave the judgement to those who like to play jury."

Kaoru was flabbergasted. Kenshin had sounded so pleasantly polite even though it was as bold as the sun upon a clear blue summer sky that he had meant it to be displeasing. Had she been closer to Rumiko's father, the young woman would have heard the man grit his teeth. However, what was most unsettling was her own reaction to her teacher's reply, realising that she had to hold herself not to jump in joy. What was going on?

"Come Rumiko," the tone was not one to argue with, the long haired man had succeeded in unnerving the older one. "I suppose we shall see each other again, Mr. Himura." With that he took hold of his daughter's hand that seemed to wish to protest but a side-glace from him kept the teenager's mouth shut.

"Have a nice day, Mr. Yamazaki."

Kaoru stared at her Writing and Literature teacher, his own lavender eyes strained on the retiring pair, his face sporting the ever present amiable mask, hiding his inner thoughts. Kaoru's amazement was absolute and she could hardly understand how he could stand unwavering under such harsh verbal treatment.

"Kenshin?"

"It is nothing, Miss Kaoru, that it is not. Do not worry yourself over something so small." He said with a pleasant smile.

She was not so easily soothed, however. "But that man was rude to you... He has no right to judge you like that."

"Neither does his daughter have the right to act the way she does to you." He started walking again in the opposite direction, striding in a leisure pace toward their starting point. "You should not let such things unease you. People are eager to label those that differs them, willing to heighten their selves above all so to forget the problems of their life. I do not blame them." He shoved his hands into his pockets, a musing look upon his handsome face. "For some people, marching over their peer's heads seems to make them feel better. It should not affect you if you keep in mind that no matter what, all are equal, even though many think otherwise."

She nodded, though her doubts and concern were not so easily shoved away. "Still..."

The duo walked silently for a while until they reached the run-down car parked not so far from the ice cream booth. The sun had warmed the interior to a near oven degree, the dark grey faux-leather coverage of the vehicle's seats warm enough to cook an egg; or so it was in Kaoru's perceptive. Polite, Kenshin unlocked the passenger side door first, encouraging her to take a seat before he rounded the engine to the driver's side.

"There are worse things than this, Miss Kaoru, that there are." The curving of his lips was reassuring and warm, his eyes shining as they settled on her worrisome figure. "I consider myself honoured for my origins, as long as I keep this in mind, nothing people may say would reach me. Do you understand?" With that he inserted the key into the ignition and started the sputtering engine.

The young woman fastened her seatbelt before answering. "I wish I had the same convictions." Her expression was dark and grim; memories of her previous life in Tokyo surfacing against her will.

The expression in Kenshin's eyes was soft and consoling. Gently resting his hand upon her right shoulder he squeezed in a reassuring gesture that seemed to warm her grieving heart.

"We all have to deal with a certain amount of hardship through our lives." He explained. "That is why we should enjoy the brighter moments of our lives as much as we can." Gazing into her blue eyes he added. "The sky is still blue over the storming clouds."

She blinked, her worries not gone, but the pain of so many trials lessen. "You're right."

He saw the corner of her lips lift ever so subtly and he could not help but chuckle happily, sizing the driving wheel with both hands, pulling the car into the road. "We should get you back to your aunts before one of them starts to worry."

Kaoru nodded, smiling brightly, her worries fading to the far back of her mind.

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**_I should apologize a thousand times and more for posting such a – forgive the expression – shitty chapter. My roommate had reformatted my computer and installed (to my great demise) Window XP (causing my computer to realise that it was old and weary, thus slowing down and even starting to shut off on it's own) and did not have Microsoft Office. In short, I did not have Word and could not correct all of my spelling mistakes. However, that does not excuse how bad the writing was. I think I was just trying to get rid of it (the chapter) as soon as possible. I remember going through a profound weariness back then over most everything I did (eventually, it turned into depression). I had trouble correcting this chapter and I'm still not very satisfied with it. It's really not as good as the rest of the story, even though some very important things happen here. Kaoru meets Tomoe for the first time, we introduce Yamazaki Rumiko (Kaoru's hateful rival) and we learn that Kenshin is not a full blooded Japanese! I hope this edited chapter is more to your liking. _**

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**_Eden_****_'s Epitaph_**

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_Edited by Guardian Forever_


	7. A Matter of Night to Day Basis

**Warnings: Mild swearing and drugs. **

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**_Honeysuckles and Moonlight Shreds_**

_By Eden's Epitaph_

Chapter 6: _A Matter of Night to Day Basis_

The bed, vast and ridiculously large for a single person and covered with layers upon layers of sheets and comforters, was not what Kenshin would have taken for himself had he not married Tomoe. The young teacher had always favoured futons over the western bedding, not because he felt them uncomfortable, far from it, and there was no problem with the commodity of such furniture. In fact, most Japanese used that kind of resting arrangement now-days. However, Kenshin was not one for eye powder and sparkling comfort. In truth, the redhead felt rather lost in such spacious beddings.

Once his wife gone, he would take off most of the sheets, keeping a thin blanket and the dove-filled comforter. Still, he would crave for the long gone futon of his early years which he had given up soon after his marriage.

The ancient alarm clock by his bedside table ticked loudly. His purple eyes followed the second needle trotting around the dial ever so slowly, one second at a time, one minute at a time, one hour at a time. Nearly two a.m. The man felt a groan form in the back of his throat, finding it hard to keep it there. He shifted, kicking his feet, before sliding to his back, arms stretched on each side of his body forming a cross, eyes now fixed on the white stucco of the ceiling. Sleep would not come. He did feel tired -- although the word '_drained_' would be more accurate -- but there was too many thoughts crumbling through his mind, scheming little ideas, wonders and musing that just refused to leave him any rest.

They were an assault to his senses, blurry of images and random remembrances. The oddity of it all was that nothing beside the short encounter with a rather narrow minded father and his pampered daughter could have triggered the defilement of roaring emotions and memories that lashed at him. At least, to his awareness, there was none beside that. What was strange was that, under normal circumstances, it would not bother him.

Kenshin had seen Kaoru's face as the man spoke the harsh words in such an easy, almost companionable way. He had been aware the anger searing into her eyes, igniting a fire and steering revolt into her spirit. The realisation that her fate was not far from his -- blue eyes among their peers more than a rarity -- had finally sunk in and compassion had swelled in his heart. He found himself closer to her somehow and the thought was... unsettling. He frowned, this was not the exact word, but he could not pin-point the exact definition to what he was feeling at the moment.

The silence was heavy, only disturbed once in a while by short, stifled sounds of the somewhat old apartment, time working it's way through the walls, making them moan and creak. The faint and distant concerto of a constant, even drop of water hitting the metallic structure of the sink gave a rhythm to the stillness of the night every other second; a shadowy, almost gloomy companion in his sleep deprived state. He would have to remedy to such thing; water was precious thing, a leak was not welcome.

A strident sound resounded, shattering the stillness of his home. He bolted into a sitting position, slightly startled as recognition came; the phone was demanding an answer.

He pushed his feet to the ground, his arm forming a gracious arc as he pulled the covers away from in the same motion. The hated strident sound came back full force; the disturbance painful to his silence dulled ears. Groaning slightly, he marched out of the bedroom, down the shadowed hallway toward the moonlit living room. He picked up the receiver half way through the third ring, his voice slightly gruff.

"Hello?"

"Himura?" inquired the voice on the other end of the communication device.

Kenshin's eyes narrowed recognizing the voice.

"Tsukioka..."

"I know you don't like me... But that was a long time ago..." There was a pause and a flagrant uneasiness before he started again. "Look, the brat's still here and Sano hasn't shown up at the time he said he would. I'm a bit worried..."

Kenshin's eyes widened. "When was he supposed to come and pick Yahiko up?" He would drop the fact that he completely disapproved of the boy being there in the first place.

There was a slight hesitation, and then Katsuhiro answered. "4 hours ago..."

"Don't tell me..." there was an under lingering growl of annoyance in the teacher's voice.

"I don't know. He talked about _Boss_ calling in..."

"I'll find him." And he hung up before Katsu could utter a single word.

Kenshin's light violet eyes glowed with barely restrained anger; what was Sanosuke thinking!

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

A small red light shown in the deep darkness of an ally created by the yellowish light of the adjacent mercury fuelled streetlight. There was the tip of a foot kissed by the light and Kenshin knew he had found the man he had been looking for. The teacher's gaze was hard and disapproving as he closed in the poorly lighted alleyway. He heard a light chuckle and the foot moved slightly, the dirt crushed under its weight. The thick cloud that was covering the night's guardian was finally blown away, revealing the tall man in a ray of bluish light. Kenshin's gaze hardened upon witnessing his best friend's condition. Sano's white t-shirt adorning a red-cross was wrinkled, a few dark brownish spots dotting the fabric, hair ruffled, many strands had finally given into gravity. His face was bruised and the high school teacher could see the lingering trace of blood at the corner of the man's mouth, the dry life liquid trailing down to his chin. He had done it again.

Sanosuke did not lift his head, aware of the redhead's presence. He did shift slightly though, a loop-side grin forming on his abused lips before he pulled his hand up, a slim rolled up paper containing some illegal substance was pressed between them, the red light of the fire shining brighter as he inhaled a long draft of it. He kept the breath in, a finger sliding into his mouth coating it with saliva before he applied it near the fire of the slim cigarette. He exhaled, staring at the reddish dot with slightly glazed eyes.

"Hi there Kenshin." He said smugly.

Said man shook his head. "Sano..."

"Yeah... I know. I said I had stopped... I did... it's just." The brunette shrugged, stifling a laugh. "Stuff happens..."

Kenshin sighed, walking around his friend to sit beside him, his back sliding down the old rough red brick wall on witch he was leaning. He faced the shadow, eyes closed as a frown formed on his face.

"How?"

"Don't you mean to ask 'why'?" Sano's tone was defiant and he could hear the smaller man's groan of anger. "Trouble out of the bar, had to kick out some bastards... they resisted." He laughed a bit. "They didn't resist too long though."

The teacher gritted his teeth. "That's not what I meant."

"One of them dropped a five... I couldn't resist." He turned his head toward his childhood friend, extending his arm and offering the oddly smelling substance.

Kenshin refused with a small nod of his head. "You know I don't touch that stuff anymore."

Sano chuckled. "It's some damn good shit, you know." That said he took another drag of it, the air seething through his clenched teeth as it drifted into his lungs, along the intoxicating smoke.

"I thought you had better resistance then that."

"I do... but there's been too much lately."

There was a minute of heavy silence. Sanosuke took a last breath before discarding the thing with a quick motion of his index finger over his thumb. He leaned his head backwards, exhaling his last breath of the drug, a rather vaporous cloud forming above his head.

"7 years today..." he uttered, his chocolate gaze glued to the clouds in motion above them.

"Yeah..." Kenshin's head dropped; with the events of the previous days, he had completely forgotten about it.

"I miss her." His voice was poignant, heavy with resentment.

"We all do."

"He hates me, you know..." Sano sighed, pain causing his voice to crack.

"It's not your fault."

"That's not what the old man thinks..."

Kenshin looked at his friend with a look that seemed to be torn between pity and anger. "Unfortunate meeting?"

"At the grave yard. The bastard chose the wrong time to morn." Sanosuke clenched his fists.

"I can assume some of your wounds are from his doing..."

The tall man kicked the dirt in front of him with his heel, a muffled curse escaping his lips. "I should have been there for her."

Purple eyes stared at the shadowed face of his companion, the pain and anguish visible even through his intoxicated state. "It was mostly my doing that caused the whole situation. I was too deep into it that I never thought about the possible repercussions." Said Kenshin.

"And I have no part into that? It's not like you pulled my arm. I needed the money too... Fuck, I think that between the two of us, it was me who was the most eager to enter the dang bargain." He uttered a deep sigh. "I should have backed out when you suggested it after A..."

"We did what we thought we could back then..." Although Kenshin did not sound too convincing himself.

Sanosuke let his legs slide down to the ground, more rock and dirt crushed to the pavement with the motion. The two fell into a long moment of inner musing. The past seemed so near, and the present ever so willing to bath into the dark events of teenage misjudgement. Guilt was not a strong enough word to describe what the two were feeling. Of the four of them, Kenshin had been the one to manage to somehow fix the storm of his life, although Sanosuke suspected that the young man ended up with the heaviest burden of them all.

"I know I asked you before but..." started the brown eyed man.

Kenshin uttered a heavy sigh. "Your assumptions were right from the beginning, Sano, that you were. I don't think I had a choice though... She agreed to it with under those conditions... and we did have some sort of feelings for each other back then though..."

"Does she still speak to her brother?" he asked.

"I don't know. We don't talk much when she's around, that we don't. We eat and we sleep, and that's all." There was a hint of wariness in his voice, the load over his shoulder heavy and crushing.

"How long...?" he had turned his head toward Kenshin as he half way formed his inquiry.

"Three years... I think. But even before that it had been short and far between."

Sano nodded. They sat still for a few more minutes when Sanosuke brought his left leg up, resting his left arm over his bent knee, his head nested on his elbow, his piercing eyes strained on his companion's darken features.

"Say um..." He thought for a moment before trying again. "Tomoe talked about Yahiko hitting some girl with a soccer ball." He had to stifle a laugh as he imagined the brat doing the deed. "What happened to her?" He felt like he should lighten the mood, it did not turn out this way, however.

"Kaoru..." uttered the smaller man, leaning his head on his palms, fixing the metallic trash cans in front of him, a rancid odour emanating from the lot, reaching his nose and making him wrink his nose in displeasure.

"The Missy with the flying foot?" Sano seemed shocked. Kenshin nodded silently, there was something in his eyes which his friend could hardly define. "What happened after that?"

"I treated her to ice cream at the pier..." there was a slight confusion in his voice as the realisation of what he had done this afternoon would be, at least to his friend, rather odd.

Kenshin was not one to easily open up to anyone. Sano was one of the rare privileged ones to whom the redheaded would confess mostly anything. They had shared so many things in the past, done so much together, it was only natural. Although the tall man could remember a small, wide eyed young Himura Kenshin as he walked into a class room for the first time, fear all over his young face, lavender eyes scanning the room in mute wonder. Even at a young age, the redhead had been aware of the problem his heritage would give him and somehow Sanosuke had felt the need to protect the seemingly weak kid who turned out to be not so powerless after all.

Sano had watched a thin and seemingly frail boy grow to an ever so silent, delicate-looking teenage. Kenshin was always polite and smiling, even to those who did him wrong. Sano was amazed at the small man's spirit. Constantly abused by classmates and teacher regardless; Japan still a narrow minded country over many matters. Of course, he was not the example of '_good behaviour_' when it came to a load of situations. The redhead's godfather, a hard and somewhat abusive man, intend into educing the half-ling into the perfection of the Japanese culture that had rejected him at birth. The small boy was an amazing fighter, his intellect developed above expectation, willing to prove himself to a society that would not even look at him.

This caused the boy to grow into a silent man, closed up and untrusting. A few friends, although close companions, one confident and a lot of enemies. Sanosuke felt a pang of guilt, remembering the influence he had on the man, pulling his friend into things and situations he had vowed to protect him from.

"Kenshin..."

"I don't know Sano... I have no idea why, but... It's as if... somehow, I know that I can trust that young woman. She..."

"Yeah... I saw her eyes."

"It's not just that... maybe I'm going mad." Kenshin narrowed his eyes. "I know I should keep my distance. The girl is my student after all... But there's something about her that just... screams for some sort of..." He had trouble finding his words and much more trouble understanding his own emotions.

"Understanding and comfort?"

The man laughed. "Yeah... something like that." He took a swift glance at his watch and looked back at Sanosuke.

"You go back home, I'll take care of Yahiko for you tomorrow. Try and take care of those wounds before Wednesday... you know that's when they come for the monthly check up."

Sanosuke nodded, he was well aware of the trouble considering his nephew. He understood they could not let the kid go to the old man, a life spent on a fishing boat was not one that they favoured for a young kid. He still could not phantom, though, why they had chose him as the brat's foster family. A single man with a past such as his, although most of it was unknown to the needed authorities -- more like hidden.

Kenshin sat up, marching slowly in the general direction of the aria where he had left the car.

"Kenshin?" Said man stopped and turned to look at his friend. "About the Missy... um..." he had trouble giving word to his thoughts. "Just don't worry so much about it. I trust your judgement."

The redhead smiled relief apparent in his clear purple orbs.

"Thanks, Sano."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Sunday had been a whirlwind, hours unfurling at high speed since Kaoru had woken up rather rudely, not to say the least. The early hours did not like her, or was it the other way around? It did not change the fact that the blue-eyed teenager was pulled out of bed at 5 when she had been planning on a nice pyjama day -- getting up late and spending the day in her night wear. Needless to say that it all had been shattered when her brazen aunts -- both of them!-- had crashed into her bed room, panicked and shouting in unison, their babbling closer to the clocking of chickens than of human beings. Something about helper being sick and needing one as fast as possible. Of course, they had no pity for their tired niece who, in a matter of minutes, was sized and thrown into the bathroom with the awfully embarrassing Shirobeko uniform. Thus started an erratic day.

Half asleep, Kaoru stared at her pale face oddly reflected on the water vapour that coated the mirror, long wet locks of midnight strands dangling along her young features. She uttered a laboured sigh, taking a tight hold of her tooth brush, musing over the abnormality of her life, wishing to be elsewhere, anywhere, but there. She had gotten to bed late, or early depending on the point of view if for one 3 a.m. was either late night or early morning, to finish her science project.

She could not help but curse the brat, all of this was caused by his evil foot kicking the hell born soccer ball right in the middle of her face. It had left one nasty bruise right between her eyes; the blue and black spot not a pretty decoration over her not so tanned skin. Oh, of course she had a pleasant day afterward. Maybe too pleasant, so dang pleasant in fact that she had completely forgot about the project that had initiated it all. About to fall asleep, her mind going over the day like rewinding a tape, she sprang up in a sitting position on her bed, her blue eyes wide in both disbelieve and anxiety. She cursed every divination, devils and Yahikos of the cosmos. Of course, she could have simply laid back down and just work on the stupid project the next day, but she was planning on lazing around and plainly disgust herself with her imitation of a couch potato.

Kaoru growled, biting on her tooth brush, it was counting without her erratic aunts. When would she learn that they were the evil little elves of '_No_ _Peace and Quiet_' that destroyed her life such as someone would rip a sheet of paper? Oh, the teenager loved them; they were her only the family she had left, but dang it all! Must they always lead her plans astray?

"Kaoru! Hurry up, it's almost 6, we've got to go!" Pushed Tae, knocking on the bathroom door as if there was no tomorrow.

"I'm almost ready Aunt Tae!"

She grimaced. Her voice sounded awfully gruff and sleepy. Three hours of sleep, she would be dead before noon at this rate. Could this day get even worse? She sure had to touch wood or else it would. She looked around... Linoleum, ceramic, plastic and tills... Where was the wood? A long, defeated sigh echoed through the room.

"I hate Sundays..."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"That stupid IDIOT!" Yahiko was not on the best of moods. If his red face and harsh language was not enough to tell, the way he held himself, fists all tight by his side, eyes narrowed and stomping foot, would lead the doubtful spirits astray. "I swear, when I'll get my hands on him I'm gonna..."

"Now, now Yahiko. Calm down!" Tried to smoother Kenshin, taking a step back from the angered kid.

"Shut up! I'm the one he forgot there for the whole night! I can't believe the... the... ROOSTER HEAD didn't have enough minds to come and pick ME!"

The ten-years-old felt like tearing something apart and the first thing coming to mind as to what to rip was his deficient uncle for leaving him at Katsu's mucky apartment to sleep on a dirty couch with the acre smell of smoke and beer as a lullaby. Sano's apartment wasn't much better, but at least it did not reek of Friday's debauchery and it was in a somewhat safer part of the low city. Although the main reason, even if he would not even admit it to himself, was that he felt immensely safe with tall man and had suddenly felt unimportant and scared. Yahiko had spent the whole evening worrying over Sanosuke's whereabouts, wondering if the rooster had died, or worse, fled like his own father had not long before the kid's mother died in a tragic accident. The boy had fell asleep on the smelly couch, near to tears and exhausted, giving way to hunted dreams and a restless night.

"You know he didn't mean to, Yahiko."

"Say that to someone else, Mister '_My wife hates me but I act as if everything's norma_l'!" As soon as the words left his mouth, Yahiko knew he had gone too far.

He watched terrified as anger flared into the usually passive purple-blue eyes of the redheaded man, the soft smile that lighted his face fading into a stern look of blatant displease and the man's jaw clenched shut. Kenshin had to take a deep breath. He knew very well that Yahiko had not meant to directly hurt him so deeply, still he had scratched at a wound that had not even began to heal. Unconsciously, his left hand went to trace the scar that marred his left cheek, closing his eyes and willing the memories to fade.

"Apologize." Was all he demanded.

"I... I..." stammered the kid.

Kenshin turned his back to the teenager in becoming not trusting his face, knowing the profound hurt and anger would be betrayed by his all too expressive eyes.

"Yahiko..."

The silence went on and the boy could not utter a single word, his breath stuck in his throat, his tongue, that betraying organ that put him into such a mess, glued to his pallet. Brown eyes slid to the grey-black concrete, feeling tears whelming into them without his consent and all he could do was walk pass the man and slid into the passenger side of the old rusty brown car, sniffing.

Kenshin stood still beside the car in the parking lot of the crumbling apartment building where resided Sanosuke's old 'p_artner in crime_', eyes strained on the slowly shifting clouds. Those white fluffy puffs of condensed water seemed to sway across the cerulean sky, dancing in gracious motion created by the high winds that blew above. The darkness at the ream of his mind, that had a few moments ago started to turn his life into a monochrome of grey and black, was lifted.

It is hard to know how a mind works. One's thought slip from one thing to the other, the words of someone wrecking a perfect mood one moment as they call back harsh memories better left sleeping in the deep recess of a mind. Then, one little detail could make those thoughts take a new turn, making connection from a starting point and awakening warmer souvenirs...

"_What do you see up there?" he inquired._

"_Um..." she narrowed her eyes as the shape stretched into something new. "There," she said tilting her head to her right and pointing to the once ice cream bowl, "I see a bird ready to take off..." she uttered dreamingly._

"_Aah?" he angled his head the way she had, trying to see that white cloudy bird and smiled when the silhouette turned into exactly what she had described it as. "You see that cloud over there; it looks like a whale..."_

"... No... It's not a whale, it's..." Kenshin blinked.

For a moment, up there in the sky, the smooth surface of the white puffs had turn into a familiar silhouette that breathed freedom and elation. He barely had the time to keep himself from uttering the girl's name, but he could still see, his memory reforming, over and over, the shape of Kaoru in the heavens. There was a faint smile on his lips, but soon a frown washed the expression away as he shook his head, blinking several other times. The thought had come, just like the memory of that day, unsuspected. He laughed; maybe he was too tense lately.

Yes, that was the only explanation. There was no way he could imagine one of his students gliding upon the sky in the shape of a cloud. This was ludicrous. So why could he not keep the smile away from his lips, why was his spirit suddenly lifting when his mind created such a graceful shape above the city? And most important, why did he want to see her so much out of a sudden?

Sighing, he rounded the old transportation machine and fell into the driver's seat. Yahiko brooded silently, his seat belt already fasten, his brown eyes glued to the charcoal grey faux-leather that warped the inside of the car. Plunging the key into the ignition, Kenshin pulled the car out of the parking lot, mind half way on the road ahead of him, the events before the sighting of heavenly drawings withdrawn to the border of his thoughts until a tiny voice called it back.

"Sorry..."

It had been so faint, almost defeated, but incredibly sincere. The teacher turned his head toward the youth when the car waited at an enter-section, the bright red of the signalisation light reflecting softly on the windshield's glass. He smiled, his hand lifting to rest on Yahiko's small shoulder, applying gentle pressure.

"Don't worry about it..."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

It was the fifth one this morning. Five stupid plates had gone flying down her tray to the hard ceramic floor of the Shirobeko in less the three hours, and that was not counting the ten glasses, three bowls and an impressive amount of utensils that had made the same catastrophic trip to oblivion-- save for the utensils that was still intact and awaiting cleaning in the kitchens where Sae was wondering if taking her niece as a helper had been a good idea after all. Tae sighed watching as Kaoru picked up the shreds of porcelain sprawled on the floor. The teenager was never that clumsy, the only catastrophe the girl would create was usually within the flipping doors of the kitchen -- or when her anger was unleashed which would compare her to the proverbial elephant in the fine glass shop.

Needless to say, both women were incredibly worried over their protégée. Had they thought of asking the black haired girl on the matter, they would probably have sent her home three hours ago when the first symptoms of over tiredness had breach out. Of course, they had other things to worry over, although the clientele was small-- a nice couple of two individuals sat at precisely both extremity of the restaurant sipping coffee on refill for god knows how long -- they were conspiring in the kitchen over an illusive plan to throw over the '_illegal_' completion across the street.

Kaoru sighed, musing over sleep deprivation and its consequences, as she disposed of the sharp pieces of a dead plate to join with its other brothers and sisters who suffered quite the same fate and now were resting in '_pieces_' in the trash bin. Seriously, Sundays were damnation before the torture of Mondays' hell. Her sleepy mind went over random thoughts concerning the week, unable to focus on anything and honestly not even trying to. Most of it went as follow: Sunday, first day of the week, last day of the weekend -- unless there was a holiday and they were rare in Japan. From that it went to: Day of rest in the Christian tradition, Easter's always a Sunday and chocolate is always a good thing though the kind of sweet people gave for the event was always so cheap and way too sweet. Honestly, who in their right mind would want to buy chocolate that's in a cardboard and plastic-film box that tastes just like it's been on the racks for years. Stores are never open on Sundays, or they close too early, right after you realise that you have no more glue for the visual support of Monday's oral presentation.

Mind is an amazing thing, really, everything seems to work so perfectly to make you think of something that has nothing to do with the first thought. From oral presentation, this is where Kaoru's mind led her: _I have one in two weeks for the Fish-Dictator. Say... how fish dictates under water? It's impossible to speak._

Kaoru imagined her history teacher in a fish tank on the wooden desk in front of the class. The girl chuckled as she walked to the table at the far corner of the room to fill in once again the coffee cup of the serious man sitting in the dark. And so her mind went on: _Why do they have such large desk anyway? I wish I had a desk like that, it would make a nice bed. I wish I was in my bed right now. Man, I swear someday Tae and Sae are going to pay for this. I think I have 25 yens left... not even enough for a candy. Yummy... I'd like to have one of those purple bittersweet balls... Purple just like..._

Her thoughts were thrown off the track when the bell of restaurant's door tinkled lovely and it's echoed distorted by her sleepy mind. Why had it sound so loud? Was it usually that loud from the back? Kaoru lift her head, barely missing someone's chin as she did so. Startled, she jumped backward, completely forgetting about the hot pot of steaming coffee in her right hand and spilling most of its content on the floor, the dark liquid slipping through the cracks of the ceramic in a black river. There was a yelp of slight pain and a kid's chortle -- a very annoying kid's chortle. The young woman blinked and looked, slightly dazed, to discover herself near the entry, a redheaded man pulling at his white dress shirt, a frown of pain on his otherwise handsome face. Now that was odd, this man looked just like...

"Is this how you greet your costumers, Miss Kaoru?" said the man, a tinge of pain in a voice that sounded jovial never the less.

"Kenshin?"

The information took a few seconds to process through her mind. She had to trace back from the moment she took the coffee container to when she poured it into a customer's cup and back to her walking toward the entry door her mind previously set on filling the next cup but forgetting all about it thanks to purple bittersweet bonbons.

"Oh my god! Mr. Himura! I'm so sorry, here let me... um..." She looked up, down and then at herself and grabbed the pink apron to dab the light brown stain on the once white shirt.

"What's going on?" Came Tae's voice, but Kaoru ignored.

"Nice going, _hag_!"

Now _that_ she would not let slip through, even when sleep deprived. "Shut up _brat_!"

"I'm not a brat!" Exclaimed Yahiko.

"Then stop acting like one!" Smarted the girl, still hard at work on Kenshin's ruined shirt. "Really, I'm sorry... I wasn't looking where I was going and... um..."

"Don't worry so much about it, Miss Kaoru. You didn't spill that much on me, most of it is on the floor anyway. Accident happens, that they do." tried to sooth the teacher.

"Accident, yes, but this is a catastrophe!" complained the raven haired girl, a helpless feeling coursing through her mind.

"No duh!"

Kaoru sent a death glare in the general direction of the spiky headed boy, the venom in her clear cerulean eyes so strong the kid actually took a step back, a shudder of discomfort crawling up his back.

"Kamiya Kaoru!" Tae could see the back of the said girl tense as her hands froze in their task. "What is going on in here? I turn my back a few seconds and this is what I find when I return?"

Kenshin watched as the young woman take a slow breath through gritted teeth. She closed her eyes, her thin fingers releasing his coffee stained shirt as she turned around, noticing for the first time the presence of her aunt.

"I'm sorry Aunt Tae... I wasn't looking where I going and then... I mean Mr... Um... Kenshin came in and then... I um..."

"I startled her, Miss Tae, that I did." Said the man, trying to help to poor girl, her dismay clear on her pretty face.

"That's not what I meant." The older woman was exasperated, her eyes large as she eyed the mess at her feet. "Kaoru, I know you're not that clumsy, but you've been breaking and spilling most everything you touch all morning."

Tears where having a congrate at the helm of her eyes for no reason. With reasoning one could conclude that the explosive mix of stress and sleep deprivation was causing her mood to embark in a tumultuous roller coaster ride. Although to Kaoru, it seemed as if the world had come to an end somehow. Her tiredness caused her vision to be dark reamed, confusing everything and mixing her emotions into a tight knot at the pit of her stomach. Her usual strength and self confidence had taken refuge somewhere, sleeping the deep sleep of the hundred years enchantment.

"It's um... Well... I mean... I didn't... um..." stammered the teenager, fingers finding comfort in tugging at the lacy contour of the white apron over the candy pink uniform dress.

Her vision was blurred and she could not understand why. She felt as if the whole world had their eyes staring in her direction, accusing, judging and condemning her all at once. Kaoru was shaking, her spirit, usually sparkling in strength, seemed to be none existent even though a second ago she had been ready to tear off Yahiko's throat. Confusion and fear was spinning over her all too pale face, the dark circles seemed to dig further under her now foggy eyes.

Kenshin watched as Kaoru fidgeted, uncomfortable and lost under the concerned gaze of her aunt. The vibrant young lady he knew was crumbling suddenly right in front of him for reasons that he could not phantom. Just as the teacher, Tae could not understand what was happening to her niece. Kaoru was known for her strong spirit and quick recovery, not to let herself being thrown off by so little and the woman was growing more and more concern over her ward.

"Kaoru... Sweetheart, what's wrong?"

The girl shook her head, swallowing the lump that obstructed her throat, wetness gliding down her sickeningly white cheeks. A hand was at her shoulder causing a light comfortable pressure and a small smile appeared on her tired features.

"I didn't sleep much last night..." she confessed in a whisper. "I had to finish homework... I'm sorry. I didn't think of the possibility..."

"Oh, Kaoru! You should have said so. We would have let you sleep." Said Tae, feeling more than guilty giving a side long glance at the lack of customers in the restaurant. "You should go home and sleep some more." Added the gentle woman with a warming smile.

"But..."

"Miss Kaoru, you really need to rest. It is obvious that you are exhausted." Pressed Kenshin whipping a tear off her cheek, behind him Yahiko blinked, stunned.

"I um..."

"I'll call a cab to make sure you get home safely, I don't trust you walking the street so tired." Tae moved to the nearest phone but was stopped mid way by the redhead.

"If I may..." The woman arched an eyebrow, Kenshin continued. "I have a car and I wouldn't mind driving Miss Kaoru home, that is if you would let me."

Yahiko's eyes could not have grown any bigger even if he had willed them to be. The boy's jaw would have hit the floor had the deed been physically possible. Of course, Kenshin was naturally a caring person, always ready to help. The offering of driving the exhausted girl home was not all that surprising on its lonely own, but it was all the rest that was so unusual. There was something in those violet eyes that held more than simple concern, the comforting hand he had applied to the girl's quaking shoulder, the way he had stared at her with blatant worry, more worry than necessary when it concerned a simple student.

"Hey! What about me?" he shouted, feeling left out and abandoned once again. Was he not important too? "What am I supposed to do, wait here until you come back... if you do?" There was bitterness in his voice that caused Kaoru to turn around, here eyes still glossy with the remains of her swarming emotions.

"Don't worry Yahiko... I'll go home by myself. It's not like I'm dying or something." The girl smiled as sweetly as she could and added. "I'm just tired, that's all. Really."

Although, what she was not saying was that her lack of sleep had caused both headaches and vertigo to torment her all morning. The young woman knew better than to go about and voice her ailments. Her aunts were stressed enough as it was, it would be the last drop to have them both covering her with the repressed mother-instincts and oestrogen they possessed. Kaoru shuddered at the idea of the women all over her such as a pair of oversized chickens fighting over an orphaned egg.

However it seemed that both arguments, either from Kaoru or Yahiko, had been labelled as none existent or irrelevant from the adult portion of the other two. What was so infuriating to the younger ones was that the subjects of the discussion suddenly became theorically absent while both were still standing right beside them.

"Really Mr. Himura? I would not mind watching over your son. The meal will be on me as well." Tae's voice sounded relieved.

"Yahiko is not my son, Miss Sekihara. It really doesn't trouble me though."

"Hey!" Kaoru and Yahiko's voice had resounded as one, both completely disagreeing.

Startled, they stared at each other, amazed that for once they were on the same level, even though the essence of their agreement was on complete different points of view. As of common accord, they decided to put aside any repulsion and work together in their fight against the evil of '_Adult Decisions_'. As they said, the enemy of my enemy is my not my friend... at least for as long as necessary.

"Kaoru, it's not that I don't trust you, but judging by how you acted all morning long, it's hard to believe you'll make it home safely all by yourself." Tried to sooth her aunt.

"I agree," added Kenshin, "besides, it would not take more than fifteen minutes." The last was intended to reason Yahiko. "You could still come with me if you want, Yahiko, that you could."

As one, the younger two stomped their foot, a moody expression darkening their features as they glared at both authorial figures.

"I'm not a little kid!" Was Kaoru's heated rejection.

"I'm not saying that you are. I'm simply..." but the restaurateur could not finish.

"If it's all such a big deal to get me home to sleep, I might as well stay here and do what you wanted me to do in the first place!"

"And cause further destruction?" Tae's sarcastic tone got a nice hew of red to spread over the otherwise pale face of her niece.

Kaoru uttered a growl that would have had many shiver in fear. Kenshin's lip tugged upward as he observed her reaction, although tired she always had a spark on the verge of bursting into flames.

"Maybe I could bring a solution that could be of satisfaction to you." Proposed the man, three pair of eyes turning toward him, waiting. "Yahiko, you either come with me or stay here but once I am done you can decide whatever you want to do afterward."

Said boy seemed to ponder over the question. The aspect of getting the day spend to his liking, despite the fact that he has been grounded less then twenty-four hours ago, was more then appealing to him.

"And what do I get from all of this?" muttered Kaoru, brooding.

"A safe ride home without the effort of walking all the way there." Tae's logic was always too accurate when it came to understanding teenage laziness.

Kaoru huffed, anger burning in her blue eyes as she glared at both her aunt and teacher. The high school student did not know why it was so upsetting her and it only managed to further anger her. Part of her, the more rational part it seemed, vigorously pointed toward the three hours of sleep the young woman had managed to gain the previous night. This lack of rest was obviously the cause of most if not all of her current irritations. As well as the reason for her denial of that same particular point. The young woman crossed her arms over her chest, defeated however unwilling to admit victory to the enemy.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Kaoru was sitting in the passenger seat of Kenshin's old car, Yahiko still inside the Shirobeko stuffing his face with miso soup, egg fried rice and possibly one of the largest helping of western style home-made waffles the restaurant ever produced. Her blue gaze stared holes into the dusted grey board in front of her, her arms stubbornly crossed over her chest, she was completely closed to anything and everything the redhead would say but did not utter. The two remained silent, not quite uncomfortable, but joy had gone touring away from the vehicle.

The man sighed, not quite sure as what to do, or say for the matter. He pondered several times the possibility of explaining, once again for god knew how many times, the benefit of him accompanying her home. Her stubborn silence was pulling the poor man on edge, something he rarely ever felt in her presence. Kenshin knew his student was probably cursing him in her mind. If anything, the frustrated look that crossed her otherwise lovely face acted like a flashing neon arrow pointing to the girl's mood. He heard her sigh, and then humph, uncrossing her legs then crossing them again, her slender fingers tapping on her bare forearm. Her blue eyes were chilling, the usually ocean warm blue turned into glacial cold, nearly grey as her storming emotions played a drama over her face.

"Miss Kaoru..." he uttered, slightly uncomfortable now, her gruff expression sending a faint shiver down his spine, fearing the repercussions of her dangerous mood. He still could faintly remember a wrecked classroom after meeting with the girl's fearsome mood swings. "You should not take this so hard, that you should not."

She humped, shifting on her seat, sliding further down, looking much like a spoiled child who did not get the toy they have begged for the first time.

"Look at this positively. You are going to get the much needed sleep you had been deprived early this morning." It took a lot for him not to stammer as he spoke. Kaoru was cold as winter.

The girl kept her gaze strained on the worn fake leather that covered the board, her white teeth worrying her lower lip. The silence becoming heavier once she choose not to answer, not really comfortable herself in this particular situation. What most frustrated her was that they all decided without her say, their mind already set on having someone drive her home, wither they had to pay or not was just a simple turn of event. The feeling of losing control of her own choices and decisions was more unnerving than the simple fact that someone was accompanying her home. That was the source of Kaoru's irritation, and a slight growl escaped her down-side turned lips.

Kenshin blinked at the sound and turned his clear lavender eyes toward his brooding passenger. He had yet to take a look at her since they left the restaurant. The young woman's eyes were darker than usual due to her frustration and probably a bit of sleepiness shoving some darker hews into the mix. Her arms where tightly crossed over her chest pushing the white apron up a bit to barely touch her chin. Her face was in a somewhat childish frustrated expression, her rosy lips pouting when she was not biting them. She was... lovely.

The teacher took a firmer grip on the steering wheal, growling innerly at his own thoughts, wondering just why exactly they had come. Kenshin spent the remaining of the voyage keeping his attention on the road, as if it was the most important thing in the world, fighting back an unwanted need to stare once again at the girl to his left. He pulled the car into the incredibly small parking lot of the building where the brazen twins and their niece resided. Taking the keys away from the ignition, he killed the engine, the rusty roaring of the machine coming to a sudden stop. The young man sat there, waiting, for about a minute before he realised that Kaoru was not moving, not even shifting on her seat as she had done throughout most of the ride.

With a slight sigh, most certain the girl was stubbornly staying in the car to protest and prove her irritation, Kenshin turned to the left to tell the young woman that they were there and she should go to bed now. Surprise, however, flew over his handsome face upon the discovery of the teenager sound asleep, curved on herself for as much comfort as she could get in such small space. His expression soften, eyes absorbing the cuteness of her, his breath slightly taken away, enough to make him breath in a somewhat sharp intake. Cute was not the word, but there was this wonderful childlike innocence about the young woman that touched his heart.

From the tight hold she had got upon her chest when she was angry, Kaoru's arms had both loosened and slid down to her laps, palms turned upward. Her earlier pouting mouth was now parted, her breath slipping through like water out of a perfectly round hole. Her chest heaving up and down with each of her deep sleep driven breaths. With a gentle smile Kenshin pulled the door knob and pulled his body out of the car, rounded it and pulled the passenger door open. He passed an arm over her, reaching for the seat belt which he unfastened with much care untangling the girl from the hold of the nylon safety instrument with the same amount of care.

She stirred a bit and the redhead, surprised, ceased all movement, hand still in mid way, the belt still in hands, and her right arm in the other. Kaoru simply sighed and turned her head in his direction, tendrils of black inked silk sliding over her porcelain-like face. The young man sucked in a breath, his nose catching the sweet essence of jasmine that covered her skin. A light blush spread over his cheeks, amethyst eyes rounding up slightly upon the pleasant discovery.

His hands were shaking, for a reason that had yet to be discovered, as he replaced her arm over her thighs, the girl's body now free of the constricting security measure. Gently, slowly as not to wake the slumbering young woman, Kenshin warped his left arm just under her knees, circling her small waist with his right one and pulled her carefully out of the car. Turning on his heels, he pushed the door close with a foot and walked toward the lobby of the apartment building. Kaoru unconsciously turned her head to bury her face in the warmth of his neck, the girl's warm breath tickling the fine hair of his nape and tickling the skin there. The teacher's blush darkened, climbing the step up to the apartment's door after gaining access to the lobby with a small degree of difficulty.

Now facing the black plastic number four that was pinned on the plywood door, Kenshin faced yet another problem. This door was locked and Kaoru was in possession of the keys. He remembered the girl shoving the sparkling metallic objects into the front pocket of her apron after Tae had gave them to her. Frowning, the young teacher pulled one knee down, draping the raven haired girl's leg over his bent knee, his right arm still supporting her back. Using his now free left hand he dove into the pocket in a blind search for the shiny item. The redheaded pulled out a set of five almost identical keys and his frown deepened. Dexterously, his fingers danced around the keys, taking hold of one between his thumb and first two fingers. The keys twinkled like bells as Kenshin tried to reach for the lock from his genuflecting position. He tried to fit the key into the whole, but it kept being pulled straight back out.

Wrong pick.

Sighing, he reached for another one, the fairy like twinkle resounding once again into the empty stairway. Would _Lady Luck_ be by his side this time? Not quite, the key fitted, but would not turn. One more attempt and the door was pushed open into the little home's entryway. Getting back to his feet, his dreaming bundle carefully cradled in his arms, the redhead stepped in, taking off his shoes with much help from the tips and heels of his feet.

To his right, the living room leading to a dinning room from where one had only to turn right to see the kitchen's island counter that acted as a separation between eating and cooking area. In front of him a hall with two doors to the right, one at the far end and a fourth one to his left. He suspected the one to the left to be the bathroom so the young man moved to the right and reach to the first door.

Behind it rested a very neat and barely decorated room. Instincts told him this was not Kaoru's sleeping quarters so he moved to the next one. Within, an equally tidied bedroom but with so much more decoration that one would feel on the brink of being overwhelmed. Reproductions of rather popular artists hanged from all the walls, porcelain dolls and other such decorating and quaint objects over flooded the book-cases and bed-tables. With a small shook of his head, Kenshin headed toward the last room discovering a nicely kept but still on the verge of being messy bedroom.

The bed had not been made for probably a few days, a few articles of clothing littered the floor, the book shelves were crumbling under a massive collection of books of all seize and genre. Pictures glued to the wall behind the bed and a lovely collection of odd objects from random animations --including the Hamtaro blue ink pen -- displayed on both bed-tables.

He smiled and walked to the dishevelled bed, laying the sleeping girl on top of it. With infinite care, he pulled her worn out brown leather shoes and colorful socks, discarding the items on the floor by the small table where a Pucca lamp smiled at him holding a large red heart. Kenshin draped the sleeping girl with white sheets and a large purple comforter that were bundled up at the foot of the bed. Kaoru uttered a soft pleasurable sigh, turning to her left, nuzzling her pillow, her right hand taking a tight grip of the comforter so to better warp herself in warmth and comfort.

He could not help but smile at the adorable sight she gave him. Her face was calm and innocent as dreams swept her away and a gentle, faint smile curved her lips. Shaking his head, Kenshin turned his attention to the wall on witch the bedpost was resting. A mural of pictures had been taped at random right above her sleeping arrangement. Poorly taken picture, the framing all wrong, proof that they were taken on the moment with the truest of expression on each person portrayed on the glassy paper. A cliché of Kaoru and some unknown boy, both holding a boken with a firm grip, although the young woman seemed to have been taken by surprise by the flash of the camera and was looking at that particular direction with a puzzled look. The boy however, had not been surprised at all, more so, his face held a somewhat mocking expression as he eyed the girl in front of him.

Another one displayed a young man with surprisingly icy blue eyes and dark as charcoal hair. He seemed expressionless, but there was a twinkle in his eyes, a slight widening in there that showed someone had sneaked up on him to take the snap. To the right of that one, a nice portrait of a small green eyed girl next to an ageing man sporting a long, bowed, white beard. Both elderly man and girl were stuffing their faces over a piece of what seemed to be chocolate cake. Pastel coulored balloons were all around them as well as gifts and colorful birthday party hats. In the corner of the picture, Kenshin could see a glimpse of dark hair and blue ribbon, someone's shoulder and a cat's tail. He took some more time observing the joyous amateur pictures, the dark haired boy and the green eyed girl were seen very often. In some, a glimpse of the blue eyed man appeared once in a while.

When the teacher finally turned to leave the girl to rest, his gaze fell on a vanity table with a rather large mirror on which sat a small agglomeration of framed pictures. Curious, Kenshin walked the few steps that separated him from the piece of furniture and glanced upon the images of memories. In a cute purple frame with a teddy bear crafted on the bottom right corner, an image of a little dark haired, blue eyed girl, clinging to a yellow duck swim tube and behind her, smiling merrily, a young man making sure she was safe. The redhead's eyes traveled from the snap-shot of the young child to one of a slightly older little girl, around the age of 7, a tooth missing as she smiled at the camera a sheep eating in her hand. The next one showed a fifteen years old Kaoru, her eyes a bit surprised as the green-eyed girl had her arm warped around Kaoru's neck, the braided girl smiling triumphantly making the victory sign to the camera.

The last framed picture was of a dark haired man with eyes not unlike those of Kaoru sporting a neat official police uniform. One could tell that the man was supposed to be serious, but a certain glitter in his eyes showed the mirth and amusement that he felt, turning what should have been solemn into a nice honest picture. A name was written on a golden plaque at the bottom of the frame.

"Kamiya Koshijiro..." he whispered, realising a moment after that this was probably Kaoru's deceased father.

Kenshin heard a slight noise behind him and turned his head to see that the girl's crystalline eyes were staring right into his own, a thin film of laziness darkening them, a bit unfocused but aware.

"My father..." she whispered, not moving from her lying position, her focus returning and senses more awake now that she uttered the words.

"So I thought," the redheaded man nodded.

"You brought me to my bed?" She then asked, blinking in mild confusion.

Another nod from him. "You fell asleep in the car... I didn't have the heart to wake you up." The last part had been uttered barely above a whisper as his memory brought images of her earlier sleeping in confidence, not a care in the world, completely relaxed and calm.

There was a long moment of silence where the two of them simply looked at each other, a strange atmosphere floating over them. Passing a hand through his soft fiery mane, Kenshin was the first to look away. Shoving the other hand into his pocket, he walked a few steps toward the bed.

"Are you still angry at me?" He inquired.

She smiled gently before answering. "It's not really at you or my Aunt that I was angry. More the fact that I could not decide what was best for me myself. I know you both had the same intentions it's just... I don't like when other people takes that kind of power over my life."

Amethyst eyes lowered once again to the floor, a side loop grin forming on his lips. "I used to think that way too..." He murmured.

"You don't anymore?"

He shook his head in semi negative. "It's not that I don't think so anymore. My life is mine to live. It's just that sometimes you can't really tell what's best for yourself..." There was a subtle bitterness to his voice, as if memory buried deep within threatened to overwhelm.

"I guess it's something we learn as we live..." she sighed turning to rest on her back watching the patterns of the stucco making various floral looking shapes over the ceiling and then closed her eyes.

"More like... something you learn as you make mistakes." His tone was getting deeper and sadder, as if all the life was being drained out of him. Joy and tenderness that was his own personal essence seemed to seep away, washed by the tides of an ocean of regrets and loath.

"But... "Kaoru said after a light yawn." Life wouldn't be as interesting if we did everything right from the beginning. What would we learn if we didn't stumble once in a while?" Her voice was growing softer as sleep was once again taking a hold over her tired mind.

"You're right..." he whispered walking toward the door, taking one last glace toward the girl who was now drifting gently toward the land of dreams and sleep warped her into a warm embrace. "It wouldn't be as interesting..."

Now sitting in the driver's seat of the worn off car, Kenshin let his forehead rest softly against the rough material covering the steering wheal. His left hand held the key into the ignition but the engine still asleep. The eyes that held so much sadness, suffering and pain were closed, the warmth of their violet iris shut from the world. This girl, no, young woman; she did more to him than anybody ever did by simply speaking her mind out in all honesty. He wondered, was it because of her unbiased young mind that she seemed to see things clearer than he? She always seemed to have the simplest answer to the most complicated situations... or feelings. Was she able to see so clearly into him to figure out just what he needed to hear or was she doing all of this without even knowing how deeply she could touch and move him?

He gripped the key with a firmer hold. Not only was she touching his soul... Kaoru was starting to worm her way into other territories, steering feelings he should not feel, at least not toward her. What was wrong with him? Was something even wrong? It... felt strange but, it wasn't something completely wrong. No... It was just... unusual.

His lids lifted, staring through the branches of the wheel out the glass of the windshield into the street. People walked by, warped in their own world, attempting to hide all the dark and striving to make the light shine brighter if only for their own sanity. Somehow Kenshin felt like his own facade was starting to crumble and soon, he would no longer be able to hold on into his carefully built walls. As he spent more time with Kaoru, the enforced cement of the dig of his emotions was cracking. He could still hide from those he did not know, but from her... It was only a matter of days and night.

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**_This chapter would be one of my favourite as well. I especially appreciated the interaction between Sanosuke and Kenshin in the first part and the small discussion he has with Kaoru in the end. Here, I need to point out what Kaoru said "_**_More the fact that I could not decide what was best for me myself_… _I don't like when other people takes that kind of power over my life.**" It's a very important part of her personality that will become even more apparent in later chapters. I hesitated a long time before finally deciding to use drugs over politics as a major trouble in Kenshin's life. I took the one I had more affinities with and I am well aware of the effect it can possibly cause. I will stay silent over my personal opinion over the subject. In all drugs, either being a simple cigarette or the real illegal stuff, play a part in our life at one point or another. Remember that what I am aiming for, in this story, is realism (blatantly contrasting with the fantastic stories I used to write). I hope I am not missing my goal.**_

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**_Eden_****_'s Epitaph_**

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_Edited by Guardian Forever_


	8. Sinking Into Or Bottled Misery

**Warnings: Mild swearing.**

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**_Honeysuckles and Moonlight Shreds_**

_By Eden's Epitaph_

Chapter Seven: _Sinking Into or Bottled Misery_

Friday, the most wonderful word of the dictionary. It would lift one's heart, makes it soar and make them joyful. Even Yahiko could not escape the elation of the magical 'Friday'. A smile plastered on his face, the boy hopped down the yellow school bus, his black backpack dangling from his left shoulder, slightly heavier then usual with the load of summer work under which his teacher had buried him. He did not mind though. Summer vacation started right as he set foot out of the vehicle and, boy, he was set on enjoying it to the fullest... At least, what he would have left of it once the stupid grounding Sanosuke pinned on him a week ago will be lifted. It had not been as tough as he had first envisioned it, though.

The big guy was not that strong of a parental reinforcement figure, on the contrary he looked more like a big brother than anything else. This was probably the reason why discipline was short live in the apartment. Whenever the spiky headed man tried to act like a father he would never be, Yahiko could not help but laugh, seeing only the brotherly look of him, even when his eyes shown in fury. Not only that, the man was an eternal teenager, a rebel to a society that would not understand him. Still, even though Sanosuke was far from the ideal foster father, he was the only family the ten-years-old had left.

Shifting his bag over his shoulder, the boy pulled at the glass door of the apartment building and slipped inside. According to experience and observation, Yahiko knew that soon enough the burden of orchestral discipline would be lift and all would be back to normal. Grinning, the ten-years-old grabbed the doorknob and forcefully pushed the fake wood door to the small 4½ neglected apartment lobby, and froze.

"… no way I would do something like that again. You hear me?" roared the tall man, his back to his nephew.

In front of him stood a sombre looking man, dark, small eyes moved to look at the child who just busted into the room, the expression of his pale face on the verge of boredom.

"Good afternoon Yahiko… my you've grown the last three years. I can barely recognize you now."

The boy's eyes became slits as recognition slipped in. Hajime Saito, the hateful man that was, out of a shear evil twist of fate, his social worker. Yahiko had to suppress a growl of anger to the back of his throat. What was he doing here? Why now? Sanosuke never told him of a possible inspection any time soon. On the contrary, his uncle had told him that there has not been a word from them for over two months. Unless… Sano had been lying, but why?

"What are you doing here?" demanded the kid, his eyes moving suspiciously from Saito to Sano's face with a harsh glare.

"My job, Yahiko-_chan_."

Said boy's glare deepened and he griped the sash of his school bag, shivering in anger but remaining motionless.

"Yahiko, go to your room." uttered Sanosuke, not turning to look at him.

"But Sano…!" he was not about to be pulled away when what occurred obviously concerned him. Yahiko could simply not walk away without at least one protest, even if small and censored.

"I said to your room. Now!" His voice boomed throughout the room.

This time, the spiky headed man had turned a hard look that demanded immediate obedience to his charge. Yahiko stood there for a few seconds, and with a scowl and a dark glare, let his heavy backpack connect loudly with the floor, stepped out of his new running shoes, glared at both his uncle and the child protection agent before stomping toward his room. The wall seemed to tremble as the bad-tempered youth slammed the yellowish-white door close.

Sanosuke eyed Saito, his glare akin to that of a warrior ready for a deadly battle. Light amusement shown in the agent's slits of eyes.

"I see the temper has yet to be worked over…"

There was a faint growl and Hajime Saito smiled wolfishly, feeling satisfaction in the younger man's anger and frustration.

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Kaoru was sitting on the edge of a desk facing the large windows of the classroom. The girl's blue eyes spied on the different anonymous lives that moved about near the school gate. Friends were saying goodbye, others left in different size of groups to some unknown destinations. Smiles, grins, laughter everywhere, on all their faces, in all of their hearts. The young woman sighed. She lowered her head gaze brushing over the floor and hands gripping the edge of the wooden desk.

Three weeks out of school. She should be overjoyed, excited, at least smiling, but she could not. She could not pretend to be happy. Right now it was just too hard. This year, all that Kamiya Kaoru was left with was an empty feeling, an impression that she did not belonged, that she never would. Joy was drained from her heart and excitement completely absent from her mind.

A year ago, the girl could remember with a sad smile, Misao had burst into their homeroom shouting so loud that passing by students stopped to peak into the class, their surprised eclipsed when recognizing the braided girl, and then walk away an amused expression on their face. The free energy that was Kaoru's best friend was enough to chase away any brooding that might darken one's mind. No matter what the problem was, Misao reshapes it into anything a thousand times merrier and a million times more pleasant. That time, however, was in the past.

The young woman sighed, gripping her left shoulder with her right hand, a small ach tugging her chest. The green-eyed tornado was kilometres away. She should be cheering someone else up, probably Soujiro, and be making plans of beach trips and mall-slouching for the twenty-one days of practically nothing better to do than having fun. How she missed them all…

Closing her eyes, raven hair sliding down from her shoulder, she leaned forward and gritted her teeth. The girl could not help but feel an anger searing through her. Anywhere in the world would be better than to be in this stupid city with her erratic aunts and crazy ten years old spawns of hell shooting soccer balls into your face just for the '_kicks_' of it. Why, in heaven's name, _HERE_!

"Miss Kaoru?"

Said girl's shoulder tensed at the sound of her name spoken so gently. Kaoru sniffed, suddenly aware of the tears that rolled down her cheeks and readjusted her position to make sure her teacher would not discover the trail of wetness that stained her face.

"Classes are over, why are you still here?"

The grip of her right hand tighten, the skin where her fingertips dove into her flesh turning bloodless white. Her muscles tensed on their own accord creating a dot of pain right between her shoulder blades. She was scared, uneasy and felt incredibly weak.

"Miss Kaoru…" he whispered taking a step toward her.

"It's alright Kenshin…" her voice was strained, rough with the ball of emotion that tightened her throat.

Stepping closer, he caught the shimmer of tears that still slid down the rim of her eyes.

"I don't believe you."

She became completely stiff, her eyes flashing open, greeted by the vision of the boring tiles on the floor. Azure orbs moved in their orbit, sliding to the left, trying to catch a glimpse of the redheaded teacher. Her vision, slightly blurred, melted forms together as the light distorted through the moist in her eyes. Kaoru could barely make out the small frame of the man behind her.

"One who is alright does not clutch themselves alone in an empty classroom, that they don't." Murmured Kenshin, his voice gaining volume as he walked closer to the young woman perched on the desk by the windows.

"How can you be so sure?" Kaoru whispered, her gaze turning back to the decreasing crowd that moved out of the large metallic school gates.

There was a moment of silence only disturbed by the amazingly soft and nearly quiet stomp of the worried man as he took the few final steps toward his student. Lavender eyes grazed the frame of the girl with a look of comfort and gentleness that one would think outstretched the boundaries of professionalism… or maybe not.

Hesitation gave his hand a faint tremor when he lifted it to delicately touch his fingertips to the curve of her left shoulder, head bowed and turned to the right, eyes half closed as memories came to him. He let out a small breath, the warm air smoothly gliding over the skin of her ear and blowing a few thin ebony strands across the sensitive flesh of her neck sending an unnoticeable shiver down her spine. Kaoru found herself holding her breath, her lungs filled with an amazingly soft and comfortable fragrance of sandalwood and honeysuckles.

"Maybe I can understand you..." He offered softly.

There was a certain widening to the girl's moist and shimmering sapphires as the teacher's word slid through her ears, bringing with them a river of compassion and an offering of help. Kaoru's hand slid down her arm, the girl's eyes moving slowly from the now nearly empty schoolyard to stare directly into the amazing amethyst of his gaze that gently examined the wetness over her face. There was a slight frown on his handsome face. He seemed somewhat displeased by Kaoru's very own displeasure, and there was a blatant will to make it all better somehow emanating from him.

His violet iris trailed up from the lingering traces of sadness upon the girl's rosy cheeks to the deep ocean of her eyes and Kenshin smiled gently, moving his head to the side. Kaoru could not help but let the corners of her mouth give into the nearly irresistible pull and turn into a pale smile. The adorably foolish expression that lit the red-haired teacher's face seemed to turn everything brighter around him and her smile grew subtly.

Kenshin's smile became softer as he witnessed Kaoru's mood starting to slowly slip away from sadness. The pressure of his hand became more present. As if, unconsciously, his fingers wished to transmit all the care he possessed for her, they became warmer. It caused comfortable warmth to spread from the point where his hand was resting on the girl's shoulder to the rest of her body. It warped her mind in much needed sooth. Unable to detach her gaze from his, her lips started to move forming words, giving voice to her thoughts.

"It'll be ok." She assured him.

Her birthing smile grew to a full-fledged one, brightening her face, illuminating her eyes. Nearly awestruck, Kenshin straightened up, hand sliding down her shoulder, and nodded. He turned his gaze to the window to admire the cotton like clouds that stretched wide across the ever so blue sky.

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_Now that he thought about it, gentle eyes tracing the smooth curves of the woman sleeping beside him, that moment in the classroom had been the trigger to it all. Of course, he had always thought the girl unusual and charming before that day. However, the smile she showed him, the truth in her eyes, such sincerity and innocence so beautifully mixed, he simply could not resist. That very particular smile was what pulled him tumbling down a first time… or was it more like soaring through the sky? _

_He smiled, eyes shut and a hand lightly trailing across the moonlit bath skin of her delicate shoulder. Since that day, he was willing to do anything to just catch a glimpse of the expression if only once more on her pretty face. Shifting, his nose touched the young woman's nape buried under the long silken strands of ink and took a lungful of her appeasing and fresh fragrance. His hand encircled her waist, one hand flat on her belly caressing the soft flesh, the other gripping gently her side, pulling the young woman closer to him as he nuzzled her neck. He sighed in contentment, that smile he would see again, and again, a thousands time over. _

_Memories still flooding his mind, the red-haired man planted soft butterfly kisses in the sea of raven water that streamed down the girl's lovely head to spill in lovely curves across the mattress and pillow. That day had held some none so pleasant memories as well…_

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The silence stretched across the room, warping the duo of teacher and student into something not quite uncomfortable, but not entirely so either. Kenshin could feel that the young woman's mood had lightened but still he felt a knot at his heart. The moisture of her earlier depression was still faintly apparent on her pale skin in a bold trace of hidden pain, even though the smile that tugged at her lips told stories of brighter future. The young man once again turned his gaze toward Kaoru. She had absent-mindedly started to lightly swing her legs, blue eyes fixed on the courtyard and expression far however not as forlorn as it once had.

"May I ask what is troubling you?" He asked, hesitant.

Kaoru's head did not turn in his direction, azure orbs glued to the empty schoolyard.

"You may ask…" her tone had an oddly playful tinge which made her teacher flinch. She turned a somewhat amused face to him.

Kenshin frowned, watching the young woman swing her legs childishly and staring at him in secret amusement. Seconds passed, morphing into minutes, and the redhead was growing impatient. After a while, he angled his head to the left. Maybe if he physically changed his point of view he would be able to understand or maybe even trigger the arrival of an answer. But it did not work, Kaoru simply continued to look at him innocently, her face an angelic mask for her mischief.

When she noticed a slight movement of his lips, as if preparing to utter something, Kaoru slid down the desk. Her brown shoes touched polished floor with a small 'tap' that sounded much louder in the nearly perfect stillness of sound. The girl grabbed her worn out school bag, slid the lashes over her shoulders, her face never once changing expression. She gave him a gentle smile before turning on her heels, her long hair nearly hitting his face, and paced to the exit. As the blue-eyed girl approached the exit, she turned her head in his direction. Her hand on the doorframe, the other sliding it open, Kaoru opened her mouth.

"Summer break just started…" her smiled faded slightly, the light drained from her face as she sobered, her expression a gently sad one, lost in memories of what once was. "...They must be all planning what to do for every second of the break. All, I'm sure, very excited and heads full of outing projects and possible dates." Kaoru's eyes lowered, turning to look at the hand on the doorframe. "I just realized that a year ago, I was just as them…" Her voice had turned to a whisper long before the last word escaped her lips.

Kaoru walked away, the clapping of her shoes as they hit the floor the only tale of her presence in the building. Kenshin stared at the door for a long moment, amazed, before he breathed out a soft, mirthless chuckle.

"Yes… Maybe I can understand you, that I could."

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The two men were facing each other in deafening silence. The tension was thickening the already heavy atmosphere. So thick, in fact, that one would not be able to walk around the room without feeling resistance in the air. A war was out going between the two men, violent in its invisible presence. Hatred seeped through every pore of their skin. An unspoken treat planed aloft the room, killing the warmth, the temperature dropping. The battle was about to begin.

"Your stupid inspection's over." growled the spiky headed man, fixing the thin man in front of him with a deadly glare. "Now… Get the _hell_ out of here!" he spat.

In his room, Yahiko kept quiet. Very, very quiet. So quiet actually, that the boy could hear the hypothetic fly circling his bedroom. The nerve wrenching insect buzzed around his head and landed on his skin sniffing about in a not so long quest for food. If one took a peek on the desk they would discover a three days old, crusted and hard as rock peanut butter and jelly toast, it was hard to miss. Growling in irritation, Yahiko wondered how the fly could have missed it and choose instead to bother him.

Forcing his concentration back on the venom seeping conversation going on in the living room, the boy tried to register every little bit of information the men could give. And knowing the damned wolf man, there will be few. Yahiko knew that his comfort and happiness was at stake right at that moment. All he prayed for was that Sanosuke would be cleaver enough to get them out of that mess -- a mess, the spiky-headed kid was sure, his uncle had created himself.

His ear pressed -- more like crushing it -- to the door, the ten-years-old could barely catch a thing. He could pick up the hatred and anger dripping from his caretaker's mouth, but the words were so well hushed, and the sound of his voice muffled by the wood of the door turned the words into different tones but nothing intelligible. However, Yahiko was never one to give up.

"Sagara…" Saito's voice was a chill to the bones. "You're a pathetic moron, and even you know that. And if you think your senseless masquerade can hide your true activities, than you're more of an imbecile than even I thought you were." He smirked hearing the younger man's growl.

"You have no proof to that."

The child protection agent laughed a cold laugh, his bright brown, nearly yellow, eyes stared at him as if he could see through him. "That's where you're wrong."

The man turned and reached for a nicely kept mahogany briefcase. He flicked the locks open with a light push of his thumbs, the clicking of the metallic pieces echoing about the room. Shifting through the mass of piled paper, Saito pulled out a voluminous file with the name _Sagara Sanosuke_ written in bold, black characters. With a light twist of his wrist, the man tossed the lot on the time worn wooden table, a few sheets sliding out.

"I did some little research lately and I found some… very interesting things about you…" Saito quirked an eyebrow, watching shock spread over Sano's face with devious satisfaction.

"This proves nothing!"

The man smirked. "You think so? Well, I think I'm going to let you give these a look over and allow you the pleasure of finding out for yourself." He said, closing his briefcase and turning toward the door. "I'll be back in a short while… and next time, the brat will be coming back with me."

Sano growled deep in his throat, anger eating his rationalism away.

"What's it gonna give you?" He asked. "What's it to you that the kid's with me or not? Why do you keep on trying to take him away from here?"

Turning his head in Sanosuke's direction, hand on the doorknob, Saito chuckled.

"Why would you want to keep the brat anyway? I heard you say it yourself, he's much more trouble than he's worth." Twisting the knob and pushing the door, he added. "It's nothing personal, Mr. Sagara. I have my principles. If the airhead that used to be the boy's social worker had done her job the right way, we wouldn't be here today."

Walking into the hallway that led outside of the apartment building, Hajime Saito turned around and gave what he thought was a pleasant smile, scaring the living light out of his interlocutor.

"Have a nice day, Mr. Sagara, and enjoy your readings… as I did."

The door was swung shut, the walls slightly vibrating from the force of the impact. Frustration swelled within the spiky-headed young man and exploded in one forceful punch to the table. The old thing shook unsteadily, the morning's forgotten coffee cup slid off the edge and shattered on the hard floor.

"Shit!"

Life was great!

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Kenshin was greeted home by the irritating shriek of the telephone. Quickly, the teacher discarded his shoes and dropped his keys and briefcase near the lobby's desk muttering '_Wait_' and '_Coming_' to the persistent communication device. With a twinge of irritation, the red-headed teacher picked up the receiver and took a short calming intake.

"Himura…"

"The rooster was warned, Himura. But that's all I can do." Said the voice on the other side.

The young man frowned. "What do you expect me to do with that? I'm a teacher, not a lawyer, Saito!"

"I'm putting my neck on the line doing that, Himura. I just can't do more than that without risking more than I'm already putting at stake. You're a cleaver man, you'll think of something. You have a week." With that, the line dropped dead.

Kenshin blinked, staring at the light grey receiver in complete confusion. When he asked Saito for his help, the redhead had not expected him to even react at all. However, this… this was not what the teacher had in mind. Maybe if Tomoe was there, things would have turned out differently. She was, after all, the one who permitted Sanosuke to win Yahiko's guardianship. But his wife was away and would not be back before mid August, of that he was mostly certain.

Kenshin never understood why his best friend had been so vehement in taking care of Uki's son. The redhead suspected it had much to do with the reason why none of the Sagara children ever talked to their father anymore. Uki had been the only one to do so once a year. It used to make Sano so angry. How he hated his father was beyond Kenshin's understanding. The two men were so much alike, maybe too much alike.

Shaking his head, the Writing and Literature teacher shoved a hand through his thick crimson mane, fingers taking hold of the black elastic band and slid it out of his hair. He had not imagined his summer break to turn out this way. Kenshin shrugged, it was not as if the previous plans had been very exciting either. His godfather had requested -- those where his almost exact words -- for his '_dumb ass_' of a god-'_brat_' to possibly show his '_girly_' face to the familial house, '_for once_'. The young teacher's eyes narrowed for a mere second, the -- that was Kenshin's exact thoughts -- egocentric '_thick head_' was not a pleasant person to visit. Though he would never utter the thought, it still felt good to confess his opinion to someone, even if it was himself.

Kenshin was about to walk into his bedroom when the phone rang once more. A sad smile curved his lips. He had ideas about who that might be. The teacher returned to the book table on which rested the device and answered.

"Sano?"

There was a moment of silence on the other side of the line before a slightly gruff voice, mixed with sadness and laughter, was heard.

"How did you know?"

"I had a feeling you'd be calling sometime soon." Was Kenshin's simple explanation, and Sanosuke knew he would not say more.

"They're about to figure it out, Kenshin… They're gonna take Yahiko to someone else, or worse… to the old man."

The spiky headed man's voice was not exactly calm, but it was not panicked either. It sounded oddly like a dosed mix of resignation and a fierce will to keep on fighting. Kenshin knew, this was not over yet.

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**_I once thought this chapter was only a filler one, but re-reading it I realized that it is actually a rather important one as well. That's when Kenshin actually starts to develop stronger feelings for Kaoru. There is also a little hint to Kaoru's past in this chapter, but I'm not telling where… I actually had to add it anyway. It's also in this chapter that the idea of a trial came to me and I had the pleasure to use Hajime Saito for the first time in a fan fiction. I appreciate that character for many reasons, but the most important are the possibilities of reactions and interaction between him and Sanosuke. I have to apologize as well for an inaccuracy in the story. Summer break in _****_Japan_****_ is three week long, however they take place in the end of July and beginning of August. I thought I might be able to re-arrange everything but it would have taken two real filler chapters for that. I hate filler chapters and this story is already long enough as it is. I hope you understand my choice._**

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**_Eden_****_'s Epitaph_**

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_Edited by Guardian Forever_


	9. Prisoner of Society

**Warnings: Mild swearing.**

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**_Honeysuckles and Moonlight Shreds_**

_By Eden's Epitaph_

Chapter 8: _Prisoner of Society_

Tap, tap, tap, tap, tap…

The noise went on incessantly, tugging evilly at that already near to snap tight nerve at Sanosuke's temple. The matters of laws always gave him a headache. The spiky headed young man was no bookworm, never read much more then necessary. Sitting around, using his head, feeding his mind… all garbage to his point of view. He needed action; he needed to move… he needed Kenshin to stop tapping his dang pen on the stupid notepad!

"Will you quit it? You're driving me crazy with all that tapping and scrapping and shuffling of yours…" he exploded turning a death glare to his red-haired friend.

The smaller man offered an apologizing smile and let go of the instrument of Sano's torture. "I'm sorry…"

The brown-haired man sighed, this was leading them nowhere. The two of them had spent morning to noon trying to figure a way out of this mess Saito had thrown at them. Nearly all of the pages of the document now rested on the dinner table, scraps of food and dirty dishes scatted among the sea of sheets. Still, no solution seemed to pierce through and darkness ruled supreme in their minds. Sanosuke could not help be feel the all more depressed knowing that all of this would have been so much easier had he not once had such ludicrous ideas. His red-haired companion looked at him with a somber expression, his eyes a gentle companionate purple. Sometimes it was amazing how easily Kenshin could read him.

"Don't worry so much about it…" Said the tall man, shrugging and leaning back on his chair.

"I still think the only promising solution would be to bring this all to court…"

Sano frowned. "I don't feel too comfortable with that…"

"Sano… Tomoe won't be back before August. We need time and the only solution that could give us some would be to call out a trial."

The dark haired man snorted. "I wish it wouldn't have come to this… You think this gonna work?"

"The only thing I'm worrying about is weather or not the court will leave Yahiko's guard to you during the investigation."

"Great…" Sano's voice was dripping sarcasm.

"Sano, I'm not a lawyer. I'm a high school teacher… but maybe…"

Hopeful brow eyes stared at Kenshin. "Maybe what?"

"Maybe… if you can't keep Yahiko's guardianship during the preparation of the trial… someone we know could take care of him."

"You?"

The teacher shook his head. "It might sound crazy but…"

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"You're suggesting I do what?"

Kaoru's raged voice boomed in the kitchen in pair with her tight fist slamming on the counter. Sae stared at her, eyes wide and shocked. Her niece was over reacting, she decided. She could not, for the life of her, understand such vehement refusal of an optional school trip to the ocean. Returning to her chopping board, the older woman sighed in outer confusion.

"I thought you liked trips to the beach." She argued, trying to defend her decision.

The girl shifted her weight, gnawing her bottom lip. "I do… it's just…"

However, the exuberant woman would not hear much more, only what she judged necessary, and the '_I do_' part was all she needed.

"Then begin to think about what you'll bring because you'll be away for a week, dear."

"What?" Kaoru had dared to hope that Sae had simply being suggesting her to sign up for the event.

"You're living in 9 days." said the smiling brunette in a pleasant tone that only tugged at her charge's nerves.

"You signed me up? And didn't even ask me first?" The raven-haired teenager was furious. It took all of her swordsmanship discipline to keep her from roaring in fury and rising a tantrum, but it did not mean that she did not itched to do so.

"Kaoru, honey, I was sure it would please you." Sae turned a caring look toward the irritated girl.

"As if spending a week with those nut-heads would actually please me…" she muttered. Martial art discipline or not, Kaoru was still Kaoru.

Tae frowned. "It'll do you good to socialize a bit, Kaoru."

The girl turned rueful. "Says who?"

"I don't get it. Anyone would be thrilled to spend even one day at the beach. You're going there for a whole week!"

"It's not the place, Aunt Sae, it's the people I'm going to be with." Groaned Kaoru, sounding much like the child she used to be.

The sharp 'thuck' of the kitchen knife colliding with the wooden chopping board gave the woman a careless feel about her as if the vegetables were more important than the courant conversation. Kaoru was fuming.

"I think you're being too judgmental. You didn't even give them a chance at knowing you." Added her aunt.

"I'm not the judgmental one here, they are." The dark haired girl replied sharply. "And they had their chance…" her eyes turned to stare at the linoleum, the sapphire color of the iris turning to a midnight blue.

"You're still thinking of the first day event?"

"Not me, they are!"

The woman sighed in irritation. Her niece could be very stubborn sometimes.

"Kaoru, you're going and that's that. I'm sure you're going to enjoy yourself."

"Yeah, right, like a tuna in the middle of a shark's party."

The young woman stormed out of the room and the thunder-like sound of a door slammed shut made the apartment vibrate.

"Teenagers…" complained Sae, turning her attention back to her dinner in the making.

Behind the shut door of her bedroom, Kaoru released her fury on the stray objects that littered the floor. She kicked a stuffed raccoon and it bounced one the wall directly back to her face. The girl growled, her mood full and her face flushed in anger. What was it with adult always knowing what was best for her? Did she not have a say on how she wished to spend her summer break?

"Dang parental control!" She shouted, kicking her western style bed… before howling in pain and falling on her behind. "Damn it!..."

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Sanosuke starred at his childhood friend with eyes large as sake cups, disbelieve clear on his startled face. Kenshin could not possibly be proposing that kind of solution. For his suggestion to sound crazy, as the red-head had put it, was quite an understatement. To the tall man, Seijuro Hiko was a tyrant, a monster coming right from the scariest and gloomiest fairy tails of his short childhood. There was a reason why Kenshin had left home at the age of sixteen, and his godfather's strict discipline and dictatorial ways was only two of thousands of them.

"Kenshin… No body on their right mind would put Hiko in charge of Yahiko… Unless he would be the only living being on the planet, and then again it's a really small probability."

However, the teacher remained silent, his violet eyes never leaving Sanosuke's features. The brunette face-faulted, nearly falling of his chair; his friend was dead serious.

"Sano, we don't have much time. Unless there's a miracle that would magically clear you of all your past, there's no other possible solution," explained the smaller man, fingers gently applying pressure at his temple, feeling the rise of a headache.

"But… but… He's…"

"Our only solution for now. Sano, he's stable, he's got a house, a dojo and a record as white as snow. Besides, it would be only a temporary arrangement, that it would."

"He's a tyrant!" argued the spiky headed man, nearly jumping out of his chair, fist connecting with the table causing a few pieces of paper to fall off.

"His strict," calmly retorted Kenshin, "but only with his students."

"And just exactly how do you suppose we get him to be the '_temporary guardian_'?" Sanosuke quirked an eyebrow, arms crossed over his chest.

Pushing out of the chair, Kenshin smiled at his friend and picked a sheet from the paper-buried table. The teacher read a few lines in silence, his face calm and a small smile formed on his lips. Saito knew what he was doing, the redheaded man could never say otherwise. The file contained nearly everything they needed, including a list of possible foster homes. Near the bottom of the sheet, a name had conveniently been highlight in bright yellow marker. With confidence, Kenshin turned the piece of paper in Sanosuke's direction. Brow eyes grew wide in disbelieve, damn that wolf… and then another thought.

"Kenshin…" the tall man uttered his voice dangerously low.

His eyes lifted from the paper to send an accusing glare toward his best friend. The high school teacher only answer was an incriminatingly innocent smile that confirmed all suspicions.

"Little bastard…" was Sano's gruff accusation.

The smaller man shrugged and reached for his briefcase, extracting a small black carnet from the old thing, he handed it to his friend. "Better call Saito as soon as possible. Setting for the trial will probably give us two or three months at most…"

Sanosuke snatched the offered carnet from Kenshin's hand, a growl of frustration escaping his throat. He should feel grateful for his friend's actions, but given the circumstances he felt more like tearing the tiny man apart. Anger was swelling inside as realization sank in and his furious gaze was about to burn wholes into Kenshin's skin. And the red-haired teacher's smile only added for it all to make some sort of frustrating sense out of a sudden. Sano was fuming!

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A soft rap of knuckles on the press-wood door of Kaoru's bedroom caught the girl's attention, distracting her forget the pain that burned her foot. She growled, her pain might be but her anger was not forgotten, yet. Grumbling myriads of curses in just as many languages, the 17-year-old grabbed the knob, twisted it and pulled the door open to have a telephone receiver shoved right in her face. The dark haired high school student blinked turning a confused look to her aunt.

"Misao for you."

Kaoru took the offered communication device with numb fingers and it journeyed to the floor just as soon as Sae relinquished her hold. A squeal of surprise could be heard from the telephone and the blue-eyed girl grimaced fearing for the health of the device more than for her best friend's ear. Picking up the phone, she held it a few centimeters away from her ear and answered.

"Misao?"

"WHAT WAS THAT KAORU!"

The raven-haired young woman face faulted -- a sweat drop seemed to appear behind her head -- nearly falling to the ground with the power the other girl's voice amplified by the microphone. Kaoru felt like petting herself for not holding the phone directly to her ear, or else her eardrum would have suffered dire consequences.

"Calm down… I only dropped the receiver." She explained.

There was a short pause, then, "Oh… I knew that."

Kaoru frowned even though her friend could not see, it would help to get the right tone. "Yeah… sure." Over reactive Misao would have thought it a bomb explosion, a gun firing or the whole house crumbling to a pile of rubbish, but never would it cross her mind that someone might drop a telephone receiver. "So… what's the phone call for?"

"SUMMER BREAK!" yelled Misao at the top of her lungs.

Kaoru hissed, this one had been unpredictable and she stumbled, her equilibrium shaky due to the quivering in her ears. "Misao… I have the speaker next to my ear, d'you want me to turn deaf or what?"

A small giggle, "Sorry girl… forgot 'bout that." Then more laughing and Kaoru felt like strangling her. "So, what'cha planning for the 3 wonderful weeks away from learning torture, my dear Kaoru?"

"Aunt Sae signed me up for a beach trip with my class…" she said in a dejecting sigh.

"You're telling ME that you're not over excited and jumping on all piece of furniture in the perimeter with joy and restlessness unable to wait for your departure to a golden sand and warm saline water paradise?"

Kaoru suppressed a laugh. "Something like that," she agreed pulling the receiver away from her still ringing ear in precaution.

"Are you dieing or something? Did you bump your head?"

The blue eyed girl blinked, surprised that Misao had not yelled this time. "I'm fine… It's just that the idea of spending a whole week stuck with '_them_' is really not that exciting."

"They haven't gotten over it yet?" inquired the girl on the other side of the receiver.

"Worse… That Rumiko's got a nasty rumor going on around school…" Kaoru blushed at the memory of her first encounter with that particular rumor.

The Monday after the 'ball in the face and sleepless night' weekend saw Kaoru eating lunch at the usual place by the school's backyard fountain. People usually kept away from there, the fountain was renowned for spluttering water at any random direction and, most of the time, soaking the poor student who had carelessly taken rest besides it. A girl from a junior class and a couple of her friends walked by, ignoring her as usual, that was when Kaoru got wind of the awful lie.

"About you?" Asked Misao, getting back her friend's attention.

The raven-haired girl nodded, and remembering that Misao could not see voiced her agreement. "Yes… About a teacher and me actually…"

Always ready to hear about some juicy stuff, even if they were not true, Kaoru's friend squealed in pure delight. "Really… a teacher huh?."

Kaoru rolled her eyes. "Details?" she asked, knowing her friend way too well.

Misao was jubilant, "DETAILS!"

"Misao…" groaned Kaoru, changing ear, the left out of order for the remaining of the conversation.

"Sorry…" there was silence, then the enthusiastic girl whined. "Ah… Kaoru… beautiful, wonderful, ever so cleaver Kaoru… I wanna know that awful stuff they are spreading about over my bestest friend ever!"

Kaoru flopped down on her bed with a heavy sigh. "It's stupid, really." She muttered. "I met my Writing and Literature teacher one weekend… I'm not sure who the brat is to him, but that imp shot a soccer ball right at my face. Kenshin only wanted to make amends and treated me to some ice-cream at the docks…"

"Kenshin? You mean that cute red-headed teacher guy you told me about?"

The blue-eyed girl blushed, her eyes fleeting even though no one was there to watch her. "It was just a way to apologize for the brat's behavior… Anyway, we were walking and that's when Rumiko and her father showed up." Kaoru still felt anger remembering their far from pleasant encounter. "It was not a very friendly meeting and since that day Rumiko has been very cold and impolite with our teacher in class… add to this that she made up a story about me sleeping with him to win the poetry contest…"

"That's ridiculous!" exclaimed Misao.

"I know…" she murmured, closing her eyes, an odd forlorn feeling rising from her heart.

Her eyes itched, as if water was gathering at the helm of her lids and Kaoru somehow knew this had nothing much to do with the rumor. A thought she would never allow herself to acknowledge rose. Imagining a less professional relationship between the gentle teacher and herself steered the girl's heart in a peculiarly pleasant way.

"… oru… Kaoru?" Misao sounded as if out of a dream and Kaoru realized that she had momentarily been completely lost in her thoughts, shutting the reality around her.

"I'm sorry Misao…" her voice was tight with an emotion she could not name. "I… I'll…" finding words had become a tedious task, her tongue numbed for a mysterious reason. "I'll call you back…"

"What? Kaoru… Kaoru what's wro…" Misao's protests were shut abruptly with a light 'bib' when Kaoru pressed the off button.

She stared into space, her mind running rampant, thoughts hard to grasp but flashes of red hair and violet eyes ruling her brain. The grip of her hand lessened. The phone slid through her fingers and bounced on the floor; she never heard. Kaoru felt lost, confuse, scared as if losing control over something. Her mind was in turmoil, a whirlwind of emotion raged inside, colliding with the fragile shell of her heart. A tear slid down her cheek, suddenly losing all control over herself and a loud sob escaped her throat. Stress, fear, pain, grieve, lost and some less depressing but all the more confusing feelings torn her apart and she pressed her face to her hands, the sobs shaking her body.

Kaoru had turned into a tight ball, hugging her pillow, crying silently and glassy eyes locked on the framed pictures littering the vanity when Sae came to talk to her. Worry and compassion softened the woman's features and sat beside her, gently caressing the teenager's long, raven hair. They remained silent, both watching the photographs as the sun moved across the sky and tinted it in dusk's orange.

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**_This chapter can easily count for a 'filler' or maybe a recapitulation or something. It marks the end of the first part of the story. Everything is set, in a way, and most everyone are realising it. We hear of the rumour for the first time, the decision for the trial is taken, summer break starts… About the summer break, I must apologize here. I did not know when Japanese students had theirs. It seemed I was a month and a half too early. I could change it but it would mean writing one or two filler chapter and I really don't want to add too much new material in the past (there are lazy people and they would get confused). There was not many changes to make in this chapter. I find it incredibly boring, but that is my point of view. It's still important, but it's not the kind of chapters I enjoy to write. I hope you liked it, if at least more then me. _**

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**_Eden_****_'s Epitaph_**

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_Edited by Guardian Forever_


	10. Midnight Thunder before Sunday’s Storm

**Warnings: Mild swearing and the misuse of the female appellation of a dog.**

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**_Honeysuckles and Moonlight Shreds_**

_By Eden's Epitaph_

Chapter 9: _Midnight__ Thunder before Sunday's Storm_

Kaoru stood alone a few steps away from the mass of students that Kenshin was trying to line up. The red haired man's polite speech spoke no authority whatsoever, his words slipping through one of ear and swiftly flying out through the other. The blue-eyed girl almost felt like laughing, watching her teacher trying to tame the pack of hormonal teenagers as they rushed to the yellow school bus, the long awaited departure had finally come.

As she was about to join in the madness -- although not quite as excited as the rest of her classmates --, the young woman felt a chilling presence behind her, an icy aura that made her shudder. Slowly, she turned her head and broke into a cold sweat, eyes wide in disbelieve. Behind her, pulling her large glasses up her nose with one finger, tight bun in place and fishy dictator eyes staring with authority at the unruly students, stood Mrs. Hirazawa Mizushi. Of all the horrible things that came with this forced school trip, Kaoru had hoped the gods would have spared her the unpleasant company of the -- sexually -- frustrated History teacher.

When Kaoru turned her attention back to the chaos by the school bus, Kenshin had a mildly surprise expression turned in her direction. However, either the look was a cause to her presence or that of the scary woman behind her, --correction, she was now in front of her -- the teenager had no idea. The straight woman took a deep breath, her fish-like eyes seeming to glare at each and every student in the mass, irritation frosting her already boreal expression.

"Attention Students!" she shouted, all heads twisting swiftly toward the source of the major-like voice. "I want you in a single line, belongings in one hand and parental authorization in another." She took a few steps then turned her head in Kaoru's direction and spoke in a less alarming but still dry, commanding tone of voice. "Except for you Miss. Kamiya, your tutor has already sent me the authorizing reply."

Kaoru felt like strangling someone, except she had no idea who, between her aunts or the hateful teacher, she wished to squeeze the throat. Sae was very serious about her going to that stupid school trip. Worse, it seemed that she had become all the more fervent to send her niece to the ocean after their conversation that day. The woman declared her niece stressed and in dire need for a little change of view and relaxation. However, being surrounded by gossiping teenagers and a disciplinary History teacher was not exactly what Kaoru could describe as a relaxing set up.

"Hurry up Miss Kamiya or you'll be left behind." The whip-like voice of Mrs. Hirazawa woke the raven-haired girl.

"If only it was possible they'd forget about me…" she muttered wishfully, gathering her things and moving toward school-bus that rocked under the weight of the students settling inside.

When she reached the vehicle, the lot of them already sat in pairs, their mixed voice creating a noise not unlike that of animals in a farm, at least to her frustrated point of view. Kaoru frowned seeing no free seat. It was just perfect, not only had she to suffer through a whole week with these people, she also had to beg for a place to sit while going somewhere she, in all honesty, did not wish to go. The black-haired girl took a few steps up the rubber carpet in the middle of the bus, eying the possibilities and eliminating them one after the other. She had just reached the fifth bench when a voice rose above the cacophony.

"If you wish, you can sit here Miss. Ka…miya, that you can."

Kaoru blinked and turned her head to the left where she saw a mass of flaming hair and smiling purple eyes. "Thank you…" she stammered, a slight blush underlining her cheeks.

Getting over her momentary surprise, Kaoru gave him a rather shy smile and heaved up her bag to dispose of it on the rack above the row of bus benches. The Writing and Literature teacher stood and moved aside and the young woman slid down on the seat next to the window. She felt a few eyes turn her way as she did and her shoulders tensed under the pressure of so many gazes. That hated rumor was starting to royally pull at her nerves.

"Don't worry Miss. Kaoru," he murmured taking his place beside her and making sure the raven-haired girl was the only one to hear. "Rumors are meant to disappear one day or another."

His smile was meant to be reassuring, but oddly, she felt herself get a tad bit more nervous. Butterflies, somehow, had taken residence in her stomach and she could feel her cheeks heat up. The girl worried her lower lip, turning her crystalline gaze toward the window, feigning indifference. Was he that observant? Kaoru was not sure if she was comfortable with the fact that her teacher knew of the dirty words that spread around campus about the pair of them. Feeling out of argument to his sentence, she shrugged.

She felt Kenshin's penetrating gaze on the back of her head for a few seconds before he got up for the second time, ready to take presence. Mrs. Hirazawa was making sure she had every written permissions as Kenshin went over the list of students, checking the names with each of the student's positive -- and the few '_smart-ass_'-- replies. Kaoru sighed; this definitely was not going to be a pleasant vacation.

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He had been staring at the constant slide of the black paved road through the windshield for so long now that he felt as if he had completely lost conscience of time. Blinking, Kenshin stole a peek at his watch; only half way there. The turmoil in which the traveling students had first gave into has subdued to a gentle chatter, some of them asleep, others reading books, Japanese or American cartoons, others simply watching the changing, yet redundant scenery through their seat window.

This was exactly what the young woman who sat next to him appeared to do, watching outside. Her hands laid folded on her laps, her head leaning on the cool glass turned in such a way he could only partially see her face from the reflection created by the window. Her long ink colored hair had loosen from the restraint of her indigo ribbon and elastic, tendrils lightly framing the contour of her face with gentle, silken lines, the rest was draped over hers and the brown back of the shared bench. He caught himself musing over the feel of those raven silk strands, blinking when an itch to touch it settled in his right hand, gripping the fabric of his pants instead.

He had realized through the last few weeks that his thoughts had been wondering quite often toward his young student. Kenshin felt almost ashamed, never before had he thought of a student out of school, unless reading a name correcting a copy. Not only that, but his thoughts had been nowhere near scholar activities, resulting in several moments of momentary guilt. The teacher felt as if something was wrong with him, yet completely normal and he was uncomfortable to the thought of it. Conflicting feelings were already tearing him apart when he thought of his wife; he did not need any more confusion.

Trying to clear his mind, Kenshin's thoughts wondered to his best friend. The request for a trial was accepted and Yahiko, under Saito's recommendations, placed under Seijuro Hiko's care. Sanosuke was not exactly thrilled with the idea, questioning the judge's sanity for giving his nephew to Kenshin's tyrannical godfather. Still, it was much better then some unknown family taking care of the sporadic child. The trial was due in approximately two months after proper investigation of the case and the redhead truthfully doubted that even Tomoe's skills could give Sano's guardianship back. His wife was proficient in laws, but she was no lawyer, and the tall man's past behaviors was such as a wine stain on a white t-shirt -- nearly impossible to wash away.

Movement caught his eyes and a soft weight pushed on his shoulder. Kenshin blinked and turned confused ridden amethysts to his right to discover a sound asleep Kaoru. Her head had unconsciously picked his shoulder as a pillow, her expression the epitome of innocence. The teacher felt his heart skip a beat, the temperature in the bus suddenly rising, a redness appearing under his eyes. He was at a lost for reactions, hesitating between gently nudging her away or simply letting her sleep there. In the end, Hirazawa's piercing glare decided for him and Kenshin shifted his position, trying to carefully push the girl back in a less compromising one. The young woman murmured something, then her lids fluttered and drowsy oceans stared at him, their face a few inches away. Kaoru smiled, her teacher blinked and she turned to rest her head against the window once again.

Kenshin felt the pleasant embarrassment on his face, the heat almost painful. He saw the History teacher shake her head and return her attention to the road. The young man sighed, stealing a side-glance to the sleeping teenager at his side; something inside was building and it felt both comforting and dangerous.

Kaoru wisely kept her head pillowed against the wall of the bus for the rest of the ride, awaking slightly each time the road rocked the vehicle too hard and falling black asleep in a matter of seconds. Kenshin was slowly dozing away when they reached their destination. The abrupt cease of movement pulled him from his trance, the young woman by his side, though, still entrapped in the land of dreams.

Mrs. Hirazawa instructed the students to form a line and exit the bus in discipline. All knew to never contradict a dictator. The Writing and Literature teacher remained behind to assure that every one of them was awakened and proceeded toward the exit, a not so tiresome task, most everyone beyond eagerness when the sea, the sand and the sun seemed to be at the rendezvous. Only when the majority of the kids had left the bus did he turn back to Kaoru. Gently, slightly hesitant, Kenshin put a hand on her shoulder and applied soft pressure, carefully rocking her body to awake her.

"Miss Kaoru," he murmured but she remained stubbornly asleep. "We're there. It's time to wake up Miss Kaoru, that it is."

A soft mumbled escaped the slumbering girl's parted lips, then a groggy moan and she turned in her seat, escaping his hand and sinking back into a relatively deep sleep. A girl had, meanwhile, passed by them, turning a questioning gaze towards her teacher's direction, a vaguely mocking smirk on her face. If Kenshin wished to wake someone up, gently shaking them usually did not work. Her almost penetrating gaze forced the red-haired man to alternate his waking method. He took a firmer grip of Kaoru's shoulder and pulled a little more force into the shaking. However, the softness of his voice lingered, much too touched by his student's abandon.

"Miss K…" another student by stepping made him pause and change his choice of naming. "Kamiya… Miss Kamiya, you have to wake up now, that you do."

Slowly, as if someone had spread heavy lead across her fluttering lids, Kaoru's sparkling sapphires unveiled. Sleep driven confusion marred her otherwise relaxed features and a soft smile adorned her lips. She crossed gaze with that of her teacher and stretched, feeling reposed and at ease.

"Kenshin?" she uttered, a yawn slightly deforming her query.

"You have to get out of the bus, Miss Kaoru."

Said girl blinked and stole a glance out of the window, her eyes widened. Outside, the tides were shining, softly crashing against a beach of golden sand and the saline air seeped into the bus, tickling her nostrils. It forced a foggy smile on her face. Kaoru loved the ocean.

"We're there?" She said.

Kenshin nodded and extended a hand, silently offering help for his drowsy student. For barely a moment, the young woman stared at him, hesitation tracing the rim of her blue iris. But it all disappeared in a heart-beat. Kaoru smiled, still somewhat drowsy, and reached for the offered hand. Oddly, as he pulled Kaoru to her feet, the moment seemed shattered into an infinite number of sweet instants. Eyes locked, both entranced by a strange, wordless understanding that touched their heart. Something was about to change and the clarity of it was mutual.

Kaoru stood on her feet, unaware that the violet-eyed man had yet to relinquish his gentle hold of her fingers. They could not move, frozen in a relatively private bubble. Only when Kenshin felt a piercing stare burn his back did he let her go, his fingers slipping from hers, uncertain it seemed, discretely stroking her digits, as if unwilling to surrender his hold. Rose tinted the young woman's cheeks and Kaoru could not help be believe that something happened. She simply was not sure was precisely _did_ occur.

"See Mrs. Hirazawa for your room assignation, Miss Kamiya…" his voice was a guarded joyous tone and his lavender orbs slid to the right. "You as well, Miss Yamazaki."

Kaoru followed his gaze and a pang of fear tugged her heart. Yamazaki Rumiko was standing to the left, not far from the bus exist, her heated glare aflame. The blue-eyed girl did not know what to do. Crimson marred her face, creating a bright alert signal screaming '_Something is not as it would seem here_!'. Kaoru was already accepting accusations. The young woman did not know if Kenshin saw or understood her but, miraculously, he simply smiled, gave her a light, friendly '_come-along_' tap on the arm and walked away without a care in the world. To her, it clearly meant '_do as I do and there should not be any trouble_'.

Rumiko's glare turned ice cold, chilling the air around her classmate as she followed the Writing and Literature teacher out of the bus. Stunned, Kaoru was left with her confusion, the blush that colored her face, threatening to become permanent, and a headache about to be born, the pressure tugging at her temples. It was strange how, only a moment ago, the warmth of Kenshin's hand on hers had seemed to brush away all worries, and with a simple glare from Rumiko had easily shattered it. Worse, it morphed that warmth into a cold, illicit feeling.

Kaoru had trouble understanding the compound of her thoughts. The feeling of trespassing into forbidden territories nagged her mind evilly when the warmth of something that was on the verge of existing pulled at her heart. Was it really wrong to somehow draw comfort out of her teacher? It seemed that the pain of her chaotic departure from her home-city lessened a little more each time she felt Kenshin's presence. The process was slow, but with each moment they spent together, it was acting as some sort of ointment on her wounded heart, curing resentment, loneliness, and pain. Was it really _that_ wrong, just because he was her teacher… and married?

The raven-haired girl seemed in a trance when she retrieved her belongings from the crimson-haired teacher. As if in a daze, Kaoru simply nodded her head in a shy show of gratitude and skidded, like an empty vessel, to where the scary History teacher stood, a pad in hand, assigning rooms to the eager students. Kenshin watched her, worry darkening the lavender hues of his eyes. The girl disappeared behind the walls of one of the small wooden beach-house.

"I'll take my bag, Mr. Himura." Came the irritated voice of a female student, snapping him out of his reverie.

"Oro?" The teacher blinked, escaping embarrassment with a masquerade of confusion, smiling sheepishly at the girl and handing her the heavy bundle. "Sorry… You sure bring a lot of things for such a short stay, Miss Shizami, that you do. This is very heavy; would you like someone to help you carry it to your cabin?"

The girl smiled and shook her head. "No thank you, teacher," she said, bowing and then took a firm grip of her bag before running away.

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Kaoru was still lost in musing when she reached her small wooden cabin. It was build exactly like the fifteen others; round wood, pointy rooftops, a set of cracking stairs leading to a small deck and a double set of western-style wooden doors. One window at the right, one at the left, two on each side each decorated with blue curtains that harbored imprints of fluffy, smiling sheep. One of the doors was completely made of mosquito screen, the other a simple western-style one with the same blue curtains over the small window. The cabins were cute, cozy, lined between the seashore and the forest that stretched to the north-east.

Eyes in the vague, the young poetess climb the cracking stairs, pulled the first then the second door and stepped inside. Three set of eyes turned her way and the atmosphere changed drastically, enough to cause the girl to blink and look around. To Kaoru's right, a girl with short, bleached hair pulled in cute pigtails had frozen, her hands above an open drawer, a flimsy looking cloth slipping from her gasp. To her left, a small, bespectacled girl sat on a bed, her eyes looked at the new arriver shyly, and cheeks tinted red. However, those two girls were nothing compared to whom stand in front of Kaoru. Yamazaki Rumiko stared at her, angry, her gaze cold and threatening.

"Get out of here!" She yelled.

Kaoru stepped back, startled. "Wh… What?"

"Yeah, get out of here, wrench, we don't want to share a room with bitches like you!" added the pseudo-blond girl.

"I… I was assigned this room, I can't change it." Argued the blue-eyed girl, her confusion clear on her pretty face.

"I said out." Rumiko took a challenging step forward saying so.

"Where do you expect me to sleep if not here?" Kaoru asked, stomping her foot and dumping her belongings on the floor, her temper coming back, slowly.

Rumiko smirked and advanced some more, her face close to that of Kaoru. The shy girl with glasses made a mouse-like sound, hugging her pillow; there was no way she would take part of this, too dangerous, too scary. However, the blond one was following her classmate, striding to the door with a malicious smile. Surrounded, the blue-eyed girl prepared for confrontation, gritting her teeth, feeling anger rage in her heart. What were those two up to? It did not take long for her to find out. Perfectly coordinated, Rumiko bent and took hold of Kaoru's bag. Meanwhile, her friend pushed the doors open. Sapphire orbs widened in surprise as the girl in front of her sprang and pushed her out of the cabin. The rejected girl stumbled upon a purposefully well-positioned foot and her rear connected hard with the wood of the outside deck.

"Go find you're beloved teacher. I'm sure he'll be more than glad for you to join him in bed." Declared Rumiko, throwing Kaoru's bags right to her face one after the other.

The door was slammed shut and locked. Kaoru, startled, stared wide eyed, her blood boiling in her veins, hands fisting, back-side on fire due to her ungraceful meeting with the floor. Never before had she felt so… murderous. Hastily, Kaoru got to her feet, blue flames igniting her furious gaze, nails nearly breaking the fragile skin of her palms. She made to crush the door her will set on tearing it apart and throwing out the irritating, judgmental, cruel girls out the same way they did for her. Instead, the young woman turned her back to the small chalet, picked her bags up and walked away.

Inside the cabin, the shy girl watched Kaoru rush away to the seaside forest at the left of the wooden house. She turned a frightened look toward her companions, not completely understanding the events that took place, or even the reason of the banning of Kamiya Kaoru.

"Why did you do that, Rumiko?" she shyly asked, hugging her pillow even tighter.

"That… Kamiya slut… she slept with Mr. Himura so she could win the poetry contest…"

"… There's… no proof of that." She muttered, her gaze returning to the woods, seeing no trace of the blue-eyed girl.

"Oh yes… I have proof…"

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Kaoru was seething, stomping on the moist floor of the forest, leaving heavy footprints in her wake. She was furious at herself for letting those… those… those pathetic excuses for human beings throw her out of the cabin. Oh, she was mad! The need to pound into something had never been so sweetly appealing or overwhelming. She kicked a rock, watching it rocket into the sky, wishing it was Rumiko and her 'Blondie' friend. But, above all, Kaoru wanted to curse her aunts to infinite torture for making her vow not to fight in anger again. Instead, the furious young woman swung her bag to a nearby tree, raging her anger vocally. A shallow thud, like wood hitting wood, made the girl pose completely. Blinking, she watched the abused bag sliding down the trunk. Upon hitting the earth, the fastening of the worn military bag tugged free and the handle of a well used boken unveiled.

Kaoru remembered packing the weapon unknown to her aunts who had been supervising her preparative such as drill sergeants would. The young woman was not sure if either of her aunts saw her slip the boken through her belongings or they if had been indulgent enough to allow her to bring it along. However, she was grateful to have it with her now.

Grinning, the raven-haired girl gripped the wooden sword and pulled it out of the bag. Her burning blue eyes scrutinized the object that was, definitively, one of her most precious possession. The wood had turned a honey color through the numerous years of use, the handle mold her hand perfectly. It did not matter if all Kaoru had to strike was scrubs, trees and rocks, all that mattered was that something was about to get the beating of a lifetime.

Taking in a deep breath, Kaoru gathered her anger, gaining some sort of hazed focus. With a yell that would have made any man crumble, she trusted forward, and followed through a fluid sword dance. Her movements were the wind, precise, gracious and swift. She fought the burning carnage that raged within, each stroke of her boken aiming, not at the hypothetic image of the warriors of her kata, but her own anger and violence.

It was not enough. Fighting thin air was like talking to a wall, useless and frustrating. The imaginary opponents took the hypocrite face of Yamazaki Rumiko and Kaoru's strokes took in power, her anger renewed, seeping like a strength giving poison through her veins. The girl's swordplay became even more fluid, her warrior's spirit increasing but her perception of the world around her numbing, the small clearing morphing into a hazed blur of green, blue and bright yellow, and rage kept swelling.

The raven-haired girl released a powerful shout, twisting her body to the left, delivering the final blow. However, instead of hitting the ground, Kaoru's boken was blocked, the sound of the collision echoing on the nearby trees and rocks. Blue eyes widened in surprise, catching glimpses or red locks and calm purple eyes. It took only a moment for her to regain her senses, only a fraction of second for the girl to understand just who it was, merely an instant for her anger to switch target. A swift graceful kick thrown upward connected painfully with a stomach sending her opponent two steps away.

"It seems that you need a more tangible adversary, Miss Kaoru, that you do." Kenshin stated, a hand nursing the slight ache created by the blow.

He gripped the branch he had used to parry the girl's final stroke with a firmer grip, taking a more offensive stance. The young woman growled, clutching her boken forcefully and gritted her teeth. Her thoughts were blinded by images of Rumiko pushing her out of the cabin, that taunting smirk on her hateful face, the malice of her spirit and the cruelty of her words. If Kenshin was willing to face her wrath, Kaoru was not one to complain. It had been several months since she last fought something else than shadows and sandbags.

Kaoru _needed_ this.

A fierce yell escaped her throat and the angry girl charged her Writing and Literature teacher. He was surprised by the sheer power of her kendo. Her movements, although drove by fury, were accurate, her aim was amazing and the strength of her arms enough to make his hand tingle with each blow delivered. Kaoru gave him her all, fighting like a true warrior, her gaze predatory, alert to any weakness in his defense, any flaw in his stance but finding none.

Himura Kenshin was easily dodging his student's attacks with feline poise. It was… infuriating! If there was one thing the young woman was proud of, it defiantly was her kendo abilities. She stepped back, lowering her boken to her side, the midnight hue of her silken trends veiling her calculative gaze. Her knuckles were turning white, her grip so powerful Kenshin swore he heard the wood of her sword protest.

Having no weapon, the teacher, upon discovering his enraged student skirmishing free wind, had torn off a fair sized branch from a near-by tree and set upon his self to help the poor girl. He, however, had not expected her to be so strong and his makeshift sword had suffered many casualties. Bits and wood shaving were ripped off and dents appeared at a few places, all results of Kaoru's mighty blows.

Kenshin did not know what triggered such a violent behavior from a girl that, although quite volatile in her reactions and gifted with such a sharp tongue, had a warrior's control over her aggressiveness. From his position, a safe ten meters away, he could see her sword hand trembling, her muscles pulled tight, tension almost visible around her. This incensed Kaoru was a completely new person, or so it seemed. She no longer was a poetess, far from the silent schoolgirl or the passionate young woman he had grown so found. The woman standing in front of him was an explosive ball of frustration and anger, she was unpredictable.

The wind stroked her hair gently, allowing him a fleeting glance of her burning gaze. The tremor that had once shaken her right arm was gone and her posture took a more menacing guise. Kenshin's amethyst eyes widened, he had not felt so threatened in many years.

"… Why…" she murmured in a tensed breath.

The redhead blinked, unsure if his ears were playing tricks on him, "Miss Kaoru…"

"WHY!" she yelled, charging him with all of her fury and raging emotions.

Kaoru swung her boken downward and a loud snap echoed in the forest. S piece of broken stick bounced on the forest floor. Kenshin's purple eyes rivaled the size of sake cups, surprised by the might of the girl's stroke. So surprised in fact that he nearly missed the second blow aimed at his side. With lightning reflex, he caught the wooden sword with his left hand, the blockade ending the match in what one could qualify as a draw.

For Kaoru, it was same as losing.

Kenshin had studied kendo under the tutoring of Seijuro Hiko. Starting at a young age, he fought many battles, won many kendo championships and confronted just as many foes and their reactions when losing. However, nothing could have prepared him to what happened next.

Kaoru stood, motionless, her boken still trapped in her opponent's firm grip. Her shocked blue eyes stared at him but did not quite see him, her gaze unfocused. Silence befell, like the proverbial calm after the storm. The warm saline wind played with their hair and everything stood still for another moment. Then, slowly, he saw the change in her. Water gathered at the rim of her crystalline orbs, her previously firm clutch lessened, her knees weakened, no longer able to sustain a standing position and she feel forward, a heart-wrenching sob tearing out of her tight throat. Startled, all Kenshin could do was warp his arms around her trembling body, kneeling on the moist ground, lost in confusion.

"Why… why…" came the soft mutter, shaken by powerful sobs.

"Miss Kaoru?"

Her only answer was her hand fisting in his shirt, her head burring in the crook of his neck and the wetness of her tears soaking skin and fabric. At a complete lost, Kenshin could only pull her closer to his chest in a silent offer of comfort, whispering sooth into her ear and caressing her quivering back. He felt utterly powerless to relief the girl of her emotional turmoil. For an uncertain amount of time, teacher and student did not move. The sound of the young woman's softening cries and the lulling hush of swaying leafs gently rang in his ear like a bittersweet melody.

He felt his heart warming, finding some sort of solace for his own conflicting emotions in this awkward yet, ever so comforting situation. Moments passed, time flitting away slowly, flowing along the sea-fragranced wind, tinted by the gentle sweetness of Kaoru's spring flower sent and the tangy flavor of her tears. Such as when he had pulled her up of her seat in the bus, time twisted and decomposed, warping them in an odd sense of rightfulness and comfort.

Quietly, he rocked the young weeping woman nestled on his laps, in a similar way he would a child. Gentle fingers caressed the side of her face, tracing the line where her silken black strands met her brow, cradling her to his warm chest willing to appease her pain. He allowed himself to forget, for a wonderful instant, the boundaries that he should not cross. For a moment, a beautiful moment, he forgot to think, nuzzling the softness of her hair, applying tender pressure at the foot of her nape with the tip of his finger, his lips brushing her brow and a soothing hush tickling her skin.

Kaoru sniffed and turned her watery sapphires up to stare into Kenshin's caring amethysts. Forgetting, it seemed, was a contagious sickness shared with a simple soft gaze. The reason behind her pain and tears was now a vague souvenir. Her hand rose, careful fingers feathering across Kenshin's marred cheek, tracing the cross shape scar in silent awe. Her complete attention focused on the mare. Wonder and curiosity was pulling at her mind, though comfort and sooth knotted her tongue.

A tingling sensation caused by the soft brush of Kaoru's fingertips on the sensitive skin of his face cause the young man to shut his eyes. Thinking still a forgotten action, Kenshin leaned into her touch, sighing at the ingenuous pleasure it caused. The girl was mesmerized by his action and reactions. Beautifully simple, his expression was true and she felt her heart flutter. What she had felt was about to be in the bus was now born although Kaoru still ignored its true essence. Yet, she was irresistibly pull toward him and that new feeling. It was such as a comfortable light so bright, so soothing that she could not help but reach out for it.

Kaoru was a moth and Kenshin seemed to be the flame.

A second hand touched his face and the skin-curtains shielding his eyes lifted. His soft violet orbs sparkled as they caught a ray of sun and he saw the young woman's expression. Wonderfully innocent, irresistible it seemed. Kenshin did not have the strength, the moment he had looked at her, he was caught. Too late to pull back, too late to think, the war was lost without a fight. The teacher's thumb brushed away the moist of her tears, face drawing closer to hers, hand cradling her head. Silently, the invitation was sent.

In Kaoru's mind, there was no hesitation. As strange as it might be, she took the offer without a single thought and gave into the irresistible attraction. Time was lost, a fraction of moment bent into eternity when lips met lips and nothing else existed. It was… sinfully right. The soft pressure of his mouth against hers, the gentle touch of his fingertips on the skin of her jaw, coaxing her and Kaoru could only oblige.

A twig snapped, foliage was brushed away, frustratingly loud. It was all it took for the pair to open their eyes and realize instantly the impact of what they just did. Kaoru blinked, mouth agape, her hand frozen on her teacher's face. The girl sprang to her feet, her eyes akin to that of a pray caught in an impasse and without a single word, ran away.

Kenshin was at a total lost, unable to understand the event that took place. One moment he had been helping the raven-haired girl to expel her anger, the second he was consoling her and the next he was... Idly, mind lost in space, the young man touch his bottom lip. He had kissed her? Purple eyes still staring in the direction where Kaoru's shadow had disappeared, he was torn between running after the girl and letting her be. Fate would not let him decide when the reason for their hurried parting walked into the small clearing.

"Himura… I've been looking for you. It seems we have a problem with Miss. Kamiya."

Said man blinked and turned toward the source of the disturbance. Before him stood Hirazawa Mizushi, face stern, fishy eyes of ice behind bottle-bottom glasses, hand on her hips, displease written all over her sharp face. His brain had barely started to work again and the words his colleague had said did not quite set in. With the only retort that came to mind, Kenshin's finger left his lips and he opened his mouth.

"Oro?" he said, a humoristic display of confusion shielding his inner musing.

"It seems that Miss. Yamazaki and Miss. Iuruza has thrown Miss. Kamiya out of their lodging and are refusing to let her back in." explained the dry History teacher.

Kenshin's eyes narrowed, the situation sinking in as well as comprehension. Now he understood the young woman's distress. The founding of her anger and tears laid in that cruel rejecting action.

"Himura!" she snapped, getting back his attention. "Have you seen the girl?"

Feeling the need to hide his emotions, the young redheaded teacher got to his feet, dusted his pants ad turned a smiling face toward the harsh woman. "It seems that Miss. Kamiya has passed by. If I am not mistaken, those should be her luggage, that they should." His tone was politely pleasant.

The woman sighed, showing a rare sight of compassion toward a fellow human being. "We need to find a new room for the girl."

"I agree," said Kenshin, his face taking a more serious expression. "Forcing her classmates to share a room with her would only result in more discrimination. This is supposed to be vacation, that it is." He took a side-glace in the direction where Kaoru had run off and walked toward her bags, picking the lot up. "I'll go ask the other students if they would exchange place with her, that I will."

Mizushi nodded and turned to a footpath that led on the opposite direction to where Kaoru had fled. "I'll try and find the girl."

Kenshin sighed, tracking back to the miniature village of beach-houses, his student's belongings swung over his shoulder. He walked, watching the foliage above his head and the sun's ray making them twinkle like green stars in daylight. The ability to think has finally returning to him and the possible consequences of his actions downed on the young teacher. Five minutes ago, he had kissed one of his students, Kamiya Kaoru, 11 years younger than he was.

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**_This chapter was one of the most surprising one I ever wrote. I never meant for Kenshin and Kaoru to kiss at that moment. Now that I'm re-reading this story, I realize that everything was leading to this moment. This chapter marks the change in our favorite couple's relationship. It also re-introduces Hirazawa Mizushi, a rather important character that I am unexplainably found of. I had to rewrite or rephrase the last scene in the bus because I realized that the little moment between our protagonists sounded a bit strange and out of the blues. I'm not sure if I did a good job in trying to repair the mood. I'll leave it to your judgment._**

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**_Eden_****_'s Epitaph_**

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_Edited by Guardian Forever_


	11. Marine Salt Omelets for Stainless Bowls

**Warnings: Mild swearing and the misuse of the female appellation of a dog.**

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**_Honeysuckles and Moonlight Shreds_**

_By Eden's Epitaph_

Chapter 10: _Marine Salt Omelets for Stainless Bowls_

She had run. Run to the point of burning her lungs. Run until her legs could carry her no more and she ran further more. Further away from pain. Further away from confusion. The forest path had transformed and shifted, the leaves and wood scenery changing into that of the sea. Kaoru's feet had followed the mellow sand road out to the seashore. Every twig her feet broke had reminded her of the sound that pushed her mind to switch to '_escape mode_'. At that point, the only thought remaining was;

Run. Run fast. Run far.

The girl had not wanted to think. Pushing everything away from the present the young woman had concentrated only in putting as much distance from herself and the rest of the human world. Loneliness never seemed as comforting as it had felt that day, and Kaoru was willing to bask in a promised seclusion and solitude, ready to spend eternity interlaced in their cold arms.

Now, her feet sinking in the wet send, the saline waves caressing her toes, blue eyes lost in the infinite distance of the horizon and the sun sinking into the vast ocean, her brain regained its natural functioning.

She saw more then remembered the day's event. Replayed almost as if watching a movie for the second time, they flaunt into her mind. Frustration, anger, pain and solace was all twisted and mixed in her heart. Random faces and words flashed in the girl's head. Sae waving her good-bye that morning and a confidant smile on her cheerful face. Mrs. Hirazawa's stern figure, the mass of fervent students awaiting the departure of the bus, teenage idle chatter raging within the yellow engine, Kenshin's comforting purple gaze and soothing words. Rumiko's cold gazes, the cruelty of the girl's accusations, the blur of a boken/stick fight with the Writing and Literature teacher and…

Warm wetness slid down the young woman's face to pool at her chin before dropping to mix with ocean water. Kaoru hated it. This helplessness, those mixed feelings, that troublesome confusion thundering in her mind, crashing her existence and distorting her life, she hated it. Tears, the materialisation of her troubles, her pain, her confusion… her weakness, they glided like pearls rolling on a wooden floor, ringlets of angst staining her eyes red. She hated it.

Anger, for herself and the world, clouded her thoughts. How could she, Kamiya Kaoru, give into a stupid crush and press her lips to those of Himura Kenshin?

She sank to her knees, the waves gently drenching her skin, and a powerful sob rocked her entire body, pain tearing through her heart. Her teacher was the closest thing the young woman had to a friend in this foreign city. No, Kenshin was a friend, a dear friend. So dear that the mere thought of him was enough to tug up the corners of her mouth. And yet, she foolishly crossed the line, gave into an overpowering need, and killed the comfort for a single moment of blissful tenderness. Would he still be a friend for her after that?

But beyond that Himura Kenshin was a married man, married to a beautiful, gracious woman. The blue-eyed girl had glimpsed upon her only once, but it had been more than enough for her to realize what a wonderful woman Himura Tomoe was. Kaoru knew, from the moment she set eyes on the lady that she could never even think to compete the delicate woman. Something inside her wanted to hate Tomoe with all of her heart, but odd as it may sound, the task was impossible.

There resided her agony. The swelling of her feelings toward the red-haired teacher threatened to overwhelm her, overwhelmed her completely. Yet she knew for a fact that it could and would never be. Tomoe would always be there, in his heart. It did not matter that she was eleven years younger then he was. Even the fact that Kaoru was his student was not an obstacle in her mind. Not at this point. Not when the girl had felt the pounding of her heart, not when she found ease and security warped by his strong arms. At this point, Kenshin could have been anything and she would still have felt the same and reach for him. What mattered, though, was that Himura Kenshin loved a woman, and Kamiya Kaoru was not her.

Therefore, she had run. Fleeing away, taking with her a fleeting taste of what she could never have and she wept. Tears rolling down her cheeks, for what would never be. On the seashore, a beautiful summer day had found closure, and with it, the dreams of young woman was shattered into millions of pieces.

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Kenshin stole a glance at his wristwatch, then at the setting sun. It was late, more than three hours had lapsed since… the incident.

Incident?

Was this the right appellation? Was he even allowed to call it a simple incident? The word ranged so wrong, even though the event seemed to fit the description.

After Kaoru disappeared in the maze of the trees, the young teacher had occupied his mind, trying to find a new residence for his student. Astonished, he realized that none of the girls wished to give their place to their raven-haired classmate. Excuses were creative for some, others simply said that there was no way they could share a room with her and if forced to, they would rather return home.

It troubled him much more than he thought it would. To see at which extend most students resented Kamiya Kaoru was more then surprising, it was unsettling. As, if he dared to think so, a friend, the blue-eyed girl was a lovely person, her pleasing, fiery character, her endless compassion and her natural generosity that forbade her any hasty judgment acted like a magnet for his pole. As a teacher, Kenshin could not forget her gifted talent in writings and her promising grades. It was hard not to appreciate her. He could not quite understand the animosity she was the victim.

The young man had to admit, though, that her self-isolation had intrigued him. Kaoru acted very distantly from every student, eliminating any possible friendship by simply ignoring not just the class, but the rest of the school as well. Kenshin could understand that the students would react to it, but the cruelty of their actions and words was too much.

He knew who spread all those awful rumors over the blue-eyed exchanged student. Kenshin had heard bits and fragments of many. Merely kid-talk in the beginning, but they all grew in malice. More venomous details, more poisoning effect and most were eager to believe each lies concocted by Yamazaki Rumiko.

However, when he had vent of the '_Poetry Contest Scandal_', as campus tagged it, the teacher felt more then a little concerned. Until that day, he had not given much attention to any vicious blabbering, aware that Kaoru herself did not even lift an eyebrow when a new one arose. Now, seeing that most girls were convinced of a half ounce of veracity, Kenshin was truly worried. In addition of the afternoon's events, he began to wonder if Rumiko had not seen, on that Sunday afternoon at the ducks, something that he had been ignoring all along. Between the terminal student and himself, there was an attraction that could no longer be ignored.

"Himura!"

Kenshin's eyes fluttered, all trace of reverie fading from their violet depth. Adverting his gaze from the setting sun, he focus on the worried expression of Hirazawa Mizushi.

"Oro… Mrs. Hirazawa, is there a problem?" He inquired.

"Yes," explained his colleague, "There seems to be no trace left of Miss. Kamiya."

Shock darkened the teacher's look. "I was certain you had found her…" he confessed.

"I have been searching for nearly three hours now… I think it's time to call a battue."

Kenshin kept silent, thinking. The sound of the waves crashing in the distance teased his ears. What should he do? It seemed that for him to personally search for the missing teenager was a very wrong option. It was, after all, their interaction that caused the girl to flee. Feeling she needed time to think, Kenshin had not told the History teacher which direction Kaoru had run. Now he feared he made the wrong decision. But still, he hesitated.

Resolution enveloped his expression and Kenshin turned a serious look toward Mrs. Hirazawa. "Don't call a battue just yet. If you would please take care of the students here, it's almost time for dinner, that it is… I will be looking for Miss. Kamiya. If I can't find her, we can organize a research party."

She seemed to hesitate. Stealing a swift look at her watch, she nodded. "Alright… You have an hour…" and the woman turned toward the large outdoor cafeteria beyond the fifteen small beach houses.

With a small sigh, Kenshin retraced the path he had walked three hours ago and stepped into the clearing. Three trails ahead, one on each sides and the one he came from behind. The broken stick had not move, the batted grass still marking the place where they sat and memories flooded. He forced his thoughts away and turned to follow into Kaoru's steps.

The young woman had run quite a way, he realized when the forest floor gave into sand and trees became a rare sighting. He found her sitting in the tide. Her hair had come undone, the indigo ribbon that once embraced the ink impregnated silk no where to be found. She hugged her legs, her cheek resting on her knees, blue crystals lost in the dark infinite of twilight.

The scene felt surreal. Kaoru's pale skin glowing red with the remaining rays of the setting sun created an image of a fiery sprite wishing good night to the light of day by the sea bank. He felt as if he had walked into a private moment between the girl and nature. When Kenshin made to leave her alone some more, he saw her blue diamonds directed at him and realized with guilt that his initiative has been too late. Kaoru had noticed him.

Attention turning to the sand, Kenshin took a few steps in the teenager's direction. He did not know what to do, what to think and most important; he had no idea what he could possibly tell her. It was strange, a Writing and Literature teacher who could not construct a sentence, who could not express anything at all. As if feeling his discomfort and confusion, Kaoru, her gaze turned to the stars as they lit up one after the other in a celestial ballet, began to speak.

"Looking at the stars reminds me of Tanabata… when I was a little girl. Things were much easier back then. Spending that day with my father was all I wanted and it satisfied me to see him smile. Just that made me very happy." She turned her head to the other side, her face now hidden to him. "Back then, I rarely ever cried. Just once, when my mother died, and maybe a little when I broke my arm…" the end of her sentence had faltered from sadness into a jolt of laugh as she remembered, and then Kaoru turned somber again. "I think I was a happy child, as adults would say. I would rarely see my father besides kendo training; _Kamiya Kashin_… _the swords that protects_, it has been in our family since the Meiji era… but the times I spent with him were… enough to me. And my mother…"

The girl tightened her self-hug, her fingers gripping the fabric of her waterlogged indigo cotton shorts. The waves lapped at the bottom of her white short-sleeved dress-shirt, sand dotting the fabric at some places. It was not the first time Kenshin saw the young woman drenched and it occurred to him that maybe, water gave her some sort of comfort. The hush of the tides was appeasing and the scenery soothing. The sound of her voice turned strained and it seemed that this time, nothing would comfort her. Not even the slow back and fro movement of the ocean.lestia

"Today… it's so much more complicated. It's as if, lately, I can't seem to have control over my emotions. I'm not particularly unhappy." She explained, still turn the opposite way, making no eye contact. "I guess… I'm sad… but not all the time. Still, I never cried so much and it's just not like me. Losing control of my emotions… and actions…" the last had been a soft whisper, barely audible over the come and go of the waves.

Kenshin felt as if he had to say something. Taking a step forward he opened his mouth, but all that came out was a rasp utterance of her name and nothing else. She would not give him the time to add much more.

"I'm sorry… It won't happen again…" she whispered.

The promise sounded broken already, as if Kaoru was not sure if she could hold up to it. Kenshin blinked, unsure for a second what that pledge was for and then it downed on him. The young woman was feeling guilt, a lot of guilt, just as he was. He walked the few remaining steps and stood behind the girl, purple eyes tracing the imaginary lines of a constellation. He kept silence, needing the moment to gather his thought and, for once, enjoying the view offered to him.

"I made a lot of mistakes in the past… and probably some more in the future." The teacher said, deep in reflection, images of his troubled teenage years flashing in his mind, the sound of gunfire, crimson blood everywhere, he touched his cheek and Tomoe's face hunted him. The young man smiled sadly and took a deep breath. "Some mistakes I regretted sourly… However… however…"

Kaoru blinked and raised her head off her knees. Mistake? It could be described as such. It was, after all, not supposed to happen. Mistakes were errors that negatively affected something or someone. This was affecting her greatly, but the negative part was not quite there. There was this sense of rightful wrongness about it that only served to confuse her. Confusing to the point of doubting that, should the situation occur once more, she would act in a similar way.

When the raven-haired girl looked at her teacher, she saw his masking smile, red hair framing his charming face.

"However," he continued, his smile never fading, simply turning tenderer, less confining, more opened, "sometimes…" His purple eyes locked with her midnight blue ones, "mistakes are worth making."

She barely had the time to get the meaning of his words. Kenshin had once again pasted that concealing smile back on his face. What exactly did he meant by that? Some mistakes were worth making? Kaoru was unsure, but something told her that her teacher must have come to that conclusion long before this day.

"We have been looking for you for the pass several hours Miss Kaoru, that we have. It seems there has been trouble with your roommates…" The change of subject took her by surprise, and she jolted, remembering the rejection that triggered the evening's events.

Kenshin continued, "You will be given a new room, that you will, but for now." He looked at her with a friendly smile, offering her his hand. "It's time to eat, that it is."

Startled and forgetting how to speak, Kaoru warped her fingers around his and he pulled her to her feet. He released her hand almost immediately and turned back the way he came, refusing to look at his student again.

"Wai… Wait, Kenshin!" exclaimed Kaoru, finally regaining usage of her voice.

Said man paused, but did not turn his head toward her. "Yes, Miss Kaoru." He answered the usual gentleness once again warming his tone.

"Whe… where will I sleep?" she asked.

"There are two spare beds in the cabin I'm sharing with Mrs. Hirazawa, that there is. You will be able decide which of them is to your liking." He replied, turning a smile to her and moved once more toward the beach camp. "Let's hurry, or will miss the serving."

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_They had indeed missed the serving, he remembered. Finding something to eat had turned out… rather interesting. He chuckled, the mirth rumbling his chest, the vibration spreading into the soft body resting in his arms. His nose still buried in her hair, he felt her steer and sigh, taking a deep awakening breathe. She shifted lightly, feeling his arms warped around her torso in a tender embrace. She twisted her head, sleepy puddles of nocturne sky looking at him with slight curiosity. _

_He crooked an eyebrow, feigning ignorance, and deposed a feathery kiss on the back of her shoulder, his eyes never leaving hers. She frowned, now quite intrigued by his playful attitude. She tried to turn, feeling the muscles of her neck tiring of the effort of keeping it in such angle, but his hold tightened, crushing her to his chest, lovingly, and chuckled some more. She sighed, letting her head fall back on the pillow, staring at the darkness of the room for a moment before looking back at him, a bit of irritation disturbing the clam of her cerulean pools._

_"Something you find funny?" She asked_

_"Maybe…"_

_"What does that mea... hin!"_

_He nipped the tender skin of her nape, causing the end her sentence to waver with a laughing yelp. She fought back the best she could when his talented fingers slid mischievously across her flesh. In retaliation, she tried to catch his evil hands only to get hers trapped instead. She was swipe, shift and turn; her hair blindfolded her, and she found herself arms above her head, wrists secured in a light but firm grip, defenseless under him. _

_Gentle digit brushed the black strands from her vision, purple orbs teasingly menacing. The young woman wrinkled her nose in childish protest and pouted. He laugh, scattering kisses across her face, causing her disapproving mask to weaver with barely concealed giggle. _

_"Thinking."__ He said._

_She blinked, "Thinking? Of what?"_

_He smiled at her. "Dinner…"_

_She gave him a puzzled look. "You're hungry?"_

_He laughed and pressed his lips against hers, molding his smile on her. "Not quite…"_

_The woman frowned. "Why so mysterious?"_

_He gave her an innocent look. "I'm being mysterious?" Her frown deepened mockingly and he gave to that adorable expression. "I'm remembering a certain dinner…," he hinted. He could not completely give in._

_She seemed not to understand, then her face illuminated and she laughed as well, remembering one of her strangest day. It had been full of contradicting emotions and opposing feelings starting from humiliation, anger, comfort, sadness and ending in humor. He smiled and laid his head on her chest, pulling the sheets back over their body. She turned her head, nestling it against his, remembering with a smile. _

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When Kenshin and Kaoru reached the cafeteria, it was already empty. The lights were turned off, moon-glimmer framing every object in the room. Chairs were turned upside down on the tables, the floor was swept and washed, the wood glowing blue with the night's natural light, not a trace of food was left. They stared in disbelieve, their stomach, as if of the same mind, loudly protesting this turn of even. Kenshin blushed when one particularly loud demand from his hunger reached his companion's ear and made her turn a slightly mocking face to him. Well, that was before her own empty insides retorted in quite the same way -- if not louder-- and she reddened from head to toes.

"Well…" Kenshin said, smiling down at her belly. "It seems we have missed the final serving."

Shock written all over her face, Kaoru looked at him. "We're not about to wait for breakfast… are we?"

The redhead chuckled and smiled reassuringly. "Of course not."

She nodded feeling relieved and awaited his instruction with avidity. For sure, Kenshin would find a solution. Silence fell and the teacher was still standing beside her, uttering nothing, doing nothing. Stomach complained and the young woman gritted her teeth. Hunger was such an uncomfortable feeling. Food had to be eaten or else, the raven-haired girl feared her stomach would eat itself off. Kenshin turned a sheepish look to her and Kaoru felt as if all hope had fled out the window.

"Any suggestion?"

She sighed. "You're the one in charger here…" she muttered, feeling slightly let down.

The teacher shrugged and took a few steps into the wide room. The low hum of the large silvery refrigerators caught his attention and he walked in that direction. Taking hold the hook of the handle, Kenshin pulled. Cold air immediately condensed at the contact of the warm exterior and watery fog spread on the floor. His head disappeared in the dark depth of the cooling machine, snooping around.

Kaoru joined him and, on the tip of her toes, tried to steal a glance inside the container. "Finding anything?" she asked.

He shook his head looking at large pieces of congealed beef with a frown. "Unless you know of a very fast way to unfreeze meat…"

The girl smiled and shook her head. "I'm not a magician…"

She went for the next refrigerator to find large sacs of milk, bricks of frozen butter and several blocks of what she thought was cheese. Touching the cubes, she realized that most everything in this food container was also frosted. Kaoru sighed heavily, her stomach getting more upset with the lack of food.

"Frozen milk, butter and cheese… Oh joy…!" she said sarcastically.

Kenshin had been investigating a large walk-in freezer finding nothing that needed did not need lot of heating and uses of cooking machines he was not acquainted with when Kaoru spoke, hearing only her sarcastic exclamation. Her character was a source of constant amazement and, unbeknownst to the young woman, amusement as well. The walk to the cafeteria had been a silent one. The young woman had been lost in deep thinking he rather not disturb. She must have come to some sort of conclusion by the time they reached their destination, now she was starting to act more like the Kaoru he knew.

He found her exploring the oversized cupboards, finding nothing eatable. She turned a quizzical look in his direction and he gave her a negative sign of his head. There was nothing useful back there. The girl frowned, wrinkling her nose in irritation display.

"I found fruit, vegetables and eggs in a fridge over there, but nothing much else."

Kenshin nodded, "We could cook omelets, that we could." He suggested.

Kaoru's face looked torturous for a second and a faint hiss escaped her lips. Worried the teacher took a step forward. "Is something wrong, Miss Kaoru?"

She blushed and smiled shyly. "It's… um… I'm not a great cook…"

Actually, to be honest, her kitchen exploit had been more in the devastating side then the tasty one. But she really was not about to tell him that.

Kenshin chuckled walking to refrigerator containing the eggs. "It can't be that bad, that it can't." He said reassuringly.

Can't be that bad? Hiroshima was nothing compared to her culinary catastrophes! All right, that was over exaggerating, but still the imagery was as strong as Kaoru's meals tasted -- if one could masticate it that is. Kenshin came back with a handful of eggs and vegetables, still smiling.

"Get a large bowl and an eggbeater, please." He instructed her.

Slightly dazed, she turned back to the cupboard and retrieved a large metallic bowl. That done, she turned on her heels and walked to a line of suspended culinary utensils by a giant stove. Her fingers warped around the handle of a middle seized stainless batter and joined her teacher who was disposing of the edibles on the shining metallic counter. Sliding open a large drawer, then the one bellow, Kenshin drew out a kitchen knife that rivaled the ones kept at the Shirobeko. Smiling, he handed her the carton eggs container.

"It's quite simple, Miss Kaoru," he assured her, the girl's discomfort palpable, "just follow my instructions."

The blue-eyed girl smiled shyly, a rare act for someone with such self-confidence. Even when confronting venomous rumors and envious behaviors she still radiated poise and control. However, when facing culinary arts and its awful outcomes, Kaoru could not help but feel extremely anxious. Especially now! Kenshin would have to eat food she _helped_ prepare. Her hands felt limp and she almost dropped the egg container, instead posed it on the counter, letting go of a breath she was not aware she was holding. Maybe ceasing of breathe for a few seconds would be enough to stop time and miss a catastrophe -- or rather, delayed it.

The Writing and Literature teacher turned kitchen instructor smiled and lifted the carton of eggs lid, picked an egg and laid it in her palm.

"Simply crack 6 eggs and whip them. I will cut the vegetables."

Kaoru nodded and turned to her task. Cracking an egg was not that hard. Tap the white-shelled orb on the corner of the bowl, split it open and the viscous by product of chicken rising will slide down into the recipient. The only problem was that the broken shell sometimes fragmented into tiny bits of crispy white and, unknown to the girl, followed the eggs into the mixing bowl.

In silence, lips curved upward, Kenshin chopped the vegetables into small bits. His movements were full of assurance, as if cooking was a pleasant routine. Kaoru was astonished; the idea of being in a kitchen was, for her, a source of nightmares. The simplest thing either tasted bad or was so disgusting-looking that none would risk tasting it. Poetry, she knew. Cooking, she did not. The teacher felt her staring and looked up, intrigued. The young woman blushed and returned her attention to the spiraling movement of the eggbeater.

"You cook often, Kenshin?" she asked, embarrassment forcing her to say something.

"Most everyday, that I do," he confessed. "I'm really not that great of a cook, though, that I'm not." His expression turned softer, gentler, loving as memories flooded. "My mother was an excellent cook." Then his eyes looked up with mirth, "but my godfather is able to burn through a cast-iron pan, that he does." His face showed a secretive look, a finger going to his mouth in a hushing sign. "But you must promises not to tell him I said that," he whispered.

She felt as if let on an intimate detail of Kenshin's past. Smiling Kaoru leaned down toward him, following his secretive attitude.

"Why's that?"

He mocked fear. "_Shishou_ would skin _Sessha_ alive, that he would."

Kaoru felt like laughing hearing Kenshin use the old respectful language. It, somehow, suited him perfectly. She had once described him to Misao as possessing the samurai's grace and this slip of ancient tongue fit this image perfectly.

"That cruel?" she asked, grinning.

"He did much worse when it happened." Kenshin said in a humorous small voice.

Kaoru's eyes widened. "He really did cook through the pan?"

The redhead nodded, taking another vegetable to slice. "_Shishou _said it was all _Sessha's_ fault for heating the stove too much." Kenshin shuddered remembering the awful punishment he got for that.

"What did he do?"

"He made _Sessha_ eat it, that he did!"

Kaoru could no longer hold back her laughter and burst in giggles. Kenshin smiled, Hiko had told him it would make him stronger, if it did not kill him. The man had said that munching on a heavenly smelling home delivered food. It had been torture.

"And… you just swallowed that…" giggled the girl.

The teacher gave her a mischievous look. "Two days later I slipped laxatives chocolates in a normal chocolate bar and offered them to him…"

Kaoru laughed some more. "Did he ever found out?"

"The following's month kendo classes turned rougher." Kenshin laughed a bit remembering. "The last day my godfather said: 'That's what one would get have they messed with their _Shishou's _digestive system.'"

The laxatives had been Sano's idea. Kenshin's actual vengeance would have been much more subtle, though he hardly believed he could have found a way to by-pass his godfather's superhuman sharpness. It seemed to please his best friend though. Sanosuke always though Hiko was the tyrant governing the small redheaded kid's every doing. The brunette never understood how the man actually helped Kenshin back then and how the teacher used to look up to his godfather. The perception had changed through time, but the respect was still the same.

"You know," Kaoru said once her laughter died. "Your godfather must be a very interesting person to be with."

"That he is, Miss Kaoru." He agreed. "Are you done mixing the eggs?" He then asked, coming to the last vegetable to fraction.

Kaoru gave the mixture a last turn of her wrist and nodded. "Yeah, I think it's enough."

"Then I'll handle the rest." He looked around and spotted a large frying pan hung on the opposite wall. "Could you get the pan over there, please?"

She did as told and followed him to the stove. He had been looking through a drawer for a spatula and found an old yellowish plastic one. Kenshin suspected that there were other spatulas less ancient but shrugged; this one would do just fine. The bits of veggies were mix with the beaten eggs, ready to be cook, the bowl waiting patiently by the slowly heating stove.

An idea stroke him, "Spice!" he said, "we need to add some spice, that we do." Kenshin turned to look through the cupboards; he stole a glance in Kaoru's direction, getting her attention. "Would you pour the eggs into the pan, please?"

"Hum… sure." She uttered, not so sure after all.

She seized the metallic bowl and let the yellowish mix drip into the heated cooking tool. The food sizzled under the heat, a delicious smell emanating from the stove watering up Kaoru's mouth and her stomach rumbled. She was hungry.

"Don't worry, Miss Kaoru. It'll soon be ready for you to eat, that it'll be." Kenshin's soft voice near her ear nearly made her jump in surprise. She turned her head to see his smiling face behind her, a hand held up with a glass saltcellar and its twin filled with pepper. "That's all I could get my hands on."

He handed her the salt and powdered some of the other spice directly into the cooking omelet. When it was her turn, Kaoru tried to do the same, however, either the holes of the cork were too large or the salt particles too small, it seemed as if a river of white spilled in on the eggs. Kaoru's eyes widened in horror.

"Oh no…" she murmured. "I'm so sorry, Kenshin…" she stammered apologetically.

Shrugging, the teacher took the salt away from her hands and put it down on the counter beside the pepper. "It's alright, Miss Kaoru, the same would have happen had it been me, that it would." He consoled her.

The girl frowned. She was not so easily convinced of such probability. "Still," she protested, "this one's going to be awfully salty."

The redheaded teacher took the spatula and gripped the handle of the pan, preparing to flip the omelet. "Don't worry about it. I'm sure it'll be just fine."

A few minutes later, a second omelet was cooked and the two were sitting on a table, attacking their food with vicious hunger. Subtly, Kaoru observed Kenshin's reaction. He had insisted on eating the salty one, hearing none of the girl's protest and discarding any argument. She felt slightly frustrated and embarrassed. Kenshin's omelet tasted deliciously good, the vegetables were cooked just right, not too crispy, the combination of salt and pepper also was just right. The young woman could only imagine how horrible hers tasted.

Kenshin was half way through his dish when his eyes enlarged in surprise. Kaoru stared at him chewing, unable to keep from grimacing. The girl was on edge. Did it taste _that _bad? The teacher reached two fingers inside his mouth and pulled out a white and hard looking particle. He chuckled and dropped it on the rim of his plate, looking back at his dinning companion.

"It seems that a bit of eggshell found its way into my plate, that it seems."

At first, the young woman did not react, but slowly, the corner of her lips lifted and soon she was laughing. Feeling coaxed by the delightful sound of her mirth, the violet-eyed man followed her in laughter. Still smiling, Kaoru rested her cheek in the palm of her hand, her blue eyes not leaving the peaceful face of the man sitting in front of her. It was so easy to laugh with him, so easy to forget that she was sad. When they were together, away from school, it was so easy to overlook the eleven years separating them… and the woman to whom he pledged his everlasting love.

The fork skated in the white porcelain. The girl's blue eyes watched her yellow food shift around, Tomoe's graceful face hunting her mind. It was just as easy to remember everything that separated them -- or rather him from her. From the corner of her eyes, Kaoru saw her teacher's worried features about to form a query that could clue him into her sobering.

Kaoru faked a smile, took a mouthful of eggs, shrugged and swallowed. "It's nothing… just… thinking."

Kenshin cocked his head but did not push the matter. "Thinking is good… as long as you don't let your thoughts suffocate you." He said, getting up, giving the girl a side-glance. "Answers come naturally with time."

He walked toward a large sink, ready to wash his empty plates along with the pan, bowl, spatula and eggbeater. The girl swallowed the last of her food, his words proceeding through her mind.

"I guess you're right," she agreed.

He smirked. "Didn't you know?" She looked at him, curious. "I'm always right, that I am."

Falsely outraged, Kaoru playfully slapped the redheaded man upside the head. "Mister Know-It-All-Himura…" she muttered, her words a bit distorted by her giggles.

He chuckled and poured dish-soap into the water-flooded sink, foam forming quickly. "I rather to be called 'Master of Knowledge', that I do, Miss Kaoru."

The girl sputtered, surprised by his retort. At lost for retaliating action, she did the easiest. She knew her teacher had seen it coming, but could not let this slide just like that. Scooping the white suds quickly, she disposed it atop his fiery mane. It made the funniest hat and she could not help but laugh. Kenshin added to the humorous picture a mock surprise and widened purple eyes, uttering his all-purpose expression.

"Oro!"

It was priceless; a bad day's sweet medicine over her swollen heart. However, mischief always led to more mischief, and if the raven-haired girl had not known yet, she was about to find out. Faster than the eye could see, she was transformed into a bearded-woman. Her blue eyes were wide, her mouth agape. This meant war!

"That's it, you little red-headed jester!"

In the end, most of the soapsuds ended up around the vicinity of the sink, the two of them nearly covered head to toes with it, cloths wet, hair dripping and laughter still shaking them once in a while. The dishes were washed, water puddles wiped and not a trace of their food confectioning was left.

Outside, by the beach, campfires were burning warm and bright, students exchanging spooky stories in the dark of the night. Kenshin and Kaoru, stomach finally appeased, headed for their shared cabin. The teacher reached for the handle, key in hand, the young woman standing behind him, staring at the sky. The lock gave away and he pushed the door. He was about to walk in when her voice froze his foot.

"Kenshin…"

He turned his head to see her back to him, her eyes searching the stars. "You can go in first and change, I'll wait outside, that I will."

She smiled and nodded her head but did not move, there was still one thing left to say. "Kenshin…" she said once more.

Perplex, he stared at her. "What is it, Miss Kaoru?"

She turned her head and looked into his lavender eyes, slightly nervous. "I've been thinking…"

He was quite aware of it. She had said so during dinner.

"Would…" She shook her head, looking back at the sky, changing her wording. "Is… asking for… your friendship too much?" she whispered.

Kenshin smiled, eyes tracing the crevices in the wooden deck. "It has been given to you long ago, Miss Kaoru, that it has."

Her head turned, sapphires shining in a conflicting mix of sorrow and joy, smile adorning the same quality. "I'm… glad."

Her voice cracked with a string of emotion. She felt like crying again, instead she turned and, impulsively, warped her arms around his neck and hugged him tightly for a short, wonderful moment. Kenshin did not even have the time to return the gesture when she fled into the dark house, closing the door behind her. Sparkling orbs of amethyst watched the door shut, a myriad of emotions passing through them ending in a soft, heartrending smile. What would become of them? Could time even tell?

Inside, back to the closed door, Kaoru's confused soul longed for the answers of the exact same questions.

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**_Now, I have a hard time remembering what was going on within my mind when I wrote this. College and University students were in strike, I was one of them. It was a strange period with lots of excuses to throw parties. I never drank so much… sigh. So this chapter is what I call a 'builder'. I was trying to pull the knot tighter between Kenshin and Kaoru. I needed to dispel a bit of the unease created by their kissing, but without completely discarding it. I'm not sure if I managed well. You tell me. _**

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**_Eden_****_'s Epitaph_**

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_Edited by Guardian Forever_


	12. Pinned and Locked

**Warnings: None.**

**__**

**_Honeysuckles and Moonlight Shreds_**

_By Eden's Epitaph_

Chapter 11: _Pinned and Locked_

Dusk was falling a sixth time on the seashore for the Kyoto students. With the setting sun always came dinner and campfires on the beach. For the last five days, Kaoru had taken the habit to eat where the fires were lit, basking in the red glow of the evening. The sound of the waves washing over the sand had something comforting, soothing. It cleansed her mind, allowing her to forget the frustrations of her situation, both social and emotional.

Sleeping in the same cabin as her teacher had proven to be much more of a torment then the possible pranks she would have suffered from had she resided elsewhere. Her discernment must have been lost along with her blue ribbon for, of all the free beds there was, Kaoru chose to claim the one beside his. Maybe the young woman was turning into some sort of masochist?

Kenshin's face already hunted her thoughts by day, and now not only was he her last thoughts before succumbing to sleep, but he was also her last vision of the real world. The girl would wake four or five times at night from dreams she did not even dare to remember, only to stare at his shadowed features, finding him more handsome each times.

The teenage-girl did not know what to do. The intimacy they shared on the first day hunted her nights and the pleasure of his company kept pulling her to him the day. Simply being a friend to someone had never been so painful. At any moment, Kaoru would feel this need to warp her arms around him and hug him so very tightly, only to remember that he was married. The fact that he was her teacher did not even matter anymore. Had it been only that, it would have been much easier to deal with.

As the week passed, the teachers along with the three camp employees did their best to entertain the students. The activities had been interesting, with little complications regarding self-made teams. It turned out that a few of the girls had taken a dislike in Rumiko. They were a little bit reluctant in taking Kaoru with them, but, willing to anger the haughty girl, it turned out more or less all right. Kaoru would team with them, but leave them alone as soon as the activity was over. It was an unspoken deal between them.

The raven-haired girl even caught herself enjoying some of the activities. The mirth of vacation was finally returning to her, maybe. At least, when she kept busy, her mind ceased to wander too close to the fiery-headed teacher. Kaoru had kept as distant from the young teacher as possible, not keen to fuel the already burning rumors. Kenshin had understood. It was already awkward that the girl was sharing the teacher's cabin. The young man did not wish to add more to the spiked tongues, or so she thought.

Tomorrow would be the departure day. Kaoru would be able to please her aunts, telling them that she enjoyed her stay, at least a little. Now, her dinner eaten, the dishes on the sand beside the rough log she sat on, the raven-haired girl wrote her inner musing down the best she could. It had been a few weeks since she last felt creative, and if she was, she did not have the time to unleash it.

It was just a little bit of quiet time before the last night at the beach would come.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"I'll come by tomorrow for dinner." Said Kenshin to the receiver, his expression slightly annoyed.

He did not know how, probably through some evil twist of fate, Seijuro Hiko had gotten grip on the camp's phone number. Kenshin had barely finished his dinner when one of the staff came to inform him of an urgent call. He had thought that maybe Sano had gotten some news about the trial; he was the only person to whom the redhead gave the number, for emergency only.

"I know I was supposed…" however, his godfather did not let him finish his sentence. Kenshin sigh, biting his lip, the man could be such an aggravation.

"Tell her I'll be there for sure…" he was finally able to say, then was cut again. "With whom?" Surprise was understating the expression that spread over his face. "She won't be back before…" Would Hiko ever let him finish his sentences? "I can't do that!" there was anger in his voice and he swallowed a curse. "But…" for sure, he was doomed. The teacher sighed. "Alright…" he pulled the phone away from his mouth, trying to cover up a growl of anger. "Yes, tomorrow afternoon."

The line dropped dead, the tonality soon to follow. Exasperated, Kenshin hung up and exited the staff house. He walked, lost in deep thought, brain screaming for a solution to this new problem. Seijuro Hiko was an aggravation with a capital A. Come to think of it, the whole word should be capitalized, imposing as he was; the word as such suited him perfectly.

Outside, students were gathering on the beach, logs and branches in arms, ready to build the evening fires. Tonight, there would be fireworks as well. A comity had been formed that day and was already hard at work to present the class with the cheep, grocery store colorful explosives. Hirazawa Mizushi was supervising the operation with the authority of a military officer.

Kenshin had been surprised by how smoothly the trip had run. Besides the first day's event, all students had behaved quite well. Some had even allowed Kaoru to join in their team for a few activities. Secretly, the redheaded teacher had been delighted to see the girl smile, enjoying herself more then she thought she would. Maybe her aunts had been right to force this voyage upon her.

He found the girl by the beach at her usual spot, note pad and pen on her lap, crystal blue eyes searching the sparkling sky in deep reflection. Every night, the young woman had sat there, a campfire for herself, watching either the burning flames or the gentle glow of the suns far away in the cosmos. Often, Kenshin had thought to join her, to chase the loneliness and distant sorrow he caught in her eyes. Always, he had turned and left her alone.

He had trouble talking with the young woman since she asked for his friendship. Suddenly, the teacher had realized that friendship was not exactly what he felt for her, at all. No longer able to deny it, he decided to put distance between the teenager and himself, conscious and afraid of the consequences. However, the nervousness he felt when he was around her had nothing to do with morality issues. Somehow, it reminded him how he used to act around Tomoe, long ago.

Tomoe, he had not thought of her for a long time. Kenshin almost forgot when his wife was supposed to come back, and how long she had been gone. Once, he had hoped for the fire in his heart to light up again so he could support the dull reality more easily. Now, he did not care much about it. His mind, as he had realized not so long ago, had wondered often toward his blue-eyed student, shadowing the already fading picture of his wife.

Tonight was the last night of this brief stay by the ocean. The redhead had mostly avoided Kaoru, only exchanging small words with the raven-haired girl, knowing that distance was needed. Kenshin still believed it… until he reached the beach and saw her.

Maybe it was that call from Hiko that caused Kenshin to seek a friendly face, or the promise he made his godfather that made him yearn for the gentle comfort he found in the lively girl's presence. Maybe it was something else, something deeper, or maybe there were no reasons at all. The fact was, after some hesitation, he walked on the sand to the farthest fire where Kaoru sat, her gaze still lost in the stars. It all seemed so natural that, even though he felt that new yet familiar nervousness, Kenshin smiled pleasantly when he reached the girl. It took but a moment for her to realize his presence. She seemed startle at first, but a smile soon spread over her lips.

"Good evening Kenshin." She greeted him.

"The same to you Miss Kaoru," he answered politely. "May I join you?" he asked after a stretching silence.

She simply nodded, picking the long stick that rested by her feet, poking the fire, shifting the embers, giving a second breath to the flames and making them burn stronger. Kenshin sat on a log on the other side of the campfire, in front of her, not daring to sit beside her. He was not sure why he felt so nervous, but he thought that the blazing heat separating them was a good thing.

"You've been writing?" he asked, needing to kill the uncomfortable silence.

"It's nothing much," she explained, fingers leaving the stick to play with the corner of the pad's pages. "I've been mostly staring…" she swallowed swiftly notifying him that, for a moment she wanted to say one thing, but said another, "at the sky."

"Would you allow me to read it?" He was genuinely interested in her writings, but also, needed a way to hide his discomfort.

Kaoru seemed to hesitate a moment, gripping her precious writing tools, her gaze lost in the flames. She then smiled, raising slightly to hand him the worn, water curled pad. He thanked her with a small nod, his eyes fleeing hers, the tip of their fingers brushing and warmness spreading over his cheeks. Feeling, oddly, quite embarrassed, Kenshin hurried his movement, turning the page around and read once.

Purple eyes lit in surprise, widening slightly, his heart skipped a beat and his stomach fluttered. Quickly, the red-haired man read again, and again. There was something there, he could see. Something about the words, their hidden sense, beautifully encoded his feelings, as if hers were mirrors of his own. The teacher stole a glance at his student. She was nervous, he could tell by the way her fingers strangled her hands or the way she shifted her feet and her dark blue eyes looked everywhere but at him.

Kenshin read one last time, very slowly, feeling every words echo his heart. In a few words, Kaoru had described what was, to him, indescribable.

_Endless moments shatter_

_Senseless thoughts occur_

_Tempted by gentleness_

_And sweetly giving into madness_

_Distorted by insanity_

_Everything appears to lose clarity_

_Reality confused in dreams_

_Discerning? No more, it seems_

"K… Kaoru…?" he uttered reaching the last line.

She blinked, her head turning swiftly in his direction. The girl's blue eyes seemed startled. Had he...? Had he simply used her name? His expression was one of amazement, of profound amazement, lavender eyes large, such as those of a child. Kaoru blushed, and looked down a bit, focusing on his nose instead of his face.

Kenshin's mouth was agape, no words coming out, simply a long outtake, a breath he had not realized he was holding. She looked up again, confused this time, waiting for his question to find a voice. His tone had been querying, has it not? Oddly, the teacher had forgotten the composition of his interrogation, and whatever was left of it could simply not be said.

"You… um... I mean… You wrote this after dinner?" He felt like slapping his forehead. How dumber could he have sound, and he dared call himself a teacher after that?

Kaoru smiled. "Yes…" she said, her voice soft, her eyes darting away from his face, a faint blush giving her a healthy glow. "But… it's been on my mind for… some times now." She confessed -- had he understood she meant the feelings and not the words themselves were what was on her mind for so long?

"It's…. very good." An idiot without vocabulary that was how he felt. It needed more depth, more explanations; he needed her to know just how '_very good_' it was. He continued to speak when he saw her about for form a word of gratitude. "What I mean is; you… describe incredibly well the vivacity of your…" he hesitated shortly, "ideas, Miss Kaoru."

She sucked in a breath, her lids hiding her eyes, her head falling down a bit. Kenshin felt the muscles of his back tense, a note of discomfort nesting in the crate of his shoulder plates where nervousness took refuge. Her silence was disturbing, confusing even. Doubt was crawling, had he said too much, had he crossed the line… again? But Kaoru looked up and smiled.

"Thank you, Kenshin." She extended her hand and he gave her back the note-pad. "It's… mostly a rough. I'm glad that you like it."

The teacher swallowed, felling his mouth morphing into a dry wasteland. "Is this… for the contest?" He finally asked.

She seemed to ponder the question for a while then nodded absently. "It could be…"

Her attention turned to the fire, watching the flames dance, licking the wood, consuming it. The young woman seemed entranced, her eyes apparently devoid of conscious thinking, her mind lost in the fiery dance reflected on her blue pools. The redheaded man blinked, adverting his gaze, realizing that he was about to fall in a similar trance, watching that reflection.

"Did you… have fun this week?" he asked, a bit clumsy with the term 'fun'.

Kaoru's lips tugged up and she pulled a lock of hair behind her ear. "Yes," she admitted with a hint of amusement in her voice, "I did have some 'fun'. My aunts will be happy to know that."

Kenshin had a secret moment of hilarity as an image of Kaoru's brazen aunts, blathering insanely, invaded his mind. The girl stared at the bonfire, watching the wood turn an incandescent red and hearing it crack under the heat. He followed her gaze and lost consciousness of time, thoughts a distant whisper for a blissful moment. Then she looked up, her eyes querying.

"Kenshin?"

He looked up, expression curious. "Um?"

"I was wondering… When did you become a teacher?"

He blinked, taken by surprise. "Not long after leaving university, 5 years ago. Why?"

"Was this… what you always wanted to do?"

They were simple questions, most anyone would probably answer without much thinking. Some might be embarrassed, though. However, for Kenshin the answer to such simple queries, as innocent as they sounded, was delving into a past he rather not think too much of.

"I… Actually," he admitted with a remote smile, "I wanted to become a neurologist, that I did."

She looked at him for several seconds, her blue eyes widening quite adorably, "Neu… neurologist? Eh… must be a long story behind this." She said, her surprise fading leaving place to a pleasant, unquestioning expression.

"A long story, indeed." He murmured.

Kaoru smiled for him, clapping her hands gently then reaching for the fire's warmth. "Even though my grandmother married a European, my family is rather traditional." She explained, not questioning her teacher any further. "For generations, the first born male would become a policeman, such as his father, and his father before him." Kaoru smirked, her eyes illuminating as memories swallowed her. "My father was very proud of that and worked hard to honor our family. He had promotions after promotions and then, when I turned 3 or something, he started to take classes at night. I didn't see him often for 2 years… and after that, even less."

The girl marked a pause, remembering some details and shook her head before resuming where she left. "They called my father '_Inspector_' Kamiya, but it was so much more then just that. After he got that post, he'd be absent for weeks, sometimes months…" She marked yet another pause and continued, "But he'd always find time to teach me the second family tradition." She acted as if she was taking a kendo position. "Of that too he was very proud. A sword that protects life, _Kamiya Kashin _was of the first school in the _Meiji _to teach such philosophy."

She fell silent for a moment, reliving, in her mind, scenes from her past. Then her face took a sour expression and she swallowed. "When my mother died and I realized that I would never have a brother, I wanted to be just like my father. I wanted to be a policeman instead of the son my father could never have." She laughed a bit and looked at him, smiling. "One day, I was cleaning the attic of our house and found a box that contained a mountain of books. Most were poems but some were lyrical novels, there were even old essays. I read them all and so many more after that I lost count." Kaoru laughed again and gripped her note-pad. "Then I started to write for the pleasure and, secretly, I began to wish to be his daughter once more instead of a replacement for a son."

Kaoru turned thoughtful for a moment, as if debating something with herself and turned her attention back to her teacher, sapphire eyes paled by sadness. "I don't think… he ever knew that…"

"I think," Kenshin said with a gentle smile, "your father would have encouraged you to do what your heart tells you, that I do. You don't have to be something you're not to please someone, Miss Kaoru. Be yourself, do what you believe is right and be happy. Every parent wants their child to be happy, that they do."

The raven-haired high school student stared at her enigmatic teacher in silence. Her blue eyes seemed to debate over surprise and agreement for her teacher's words. Slowly, a smile curved her rosy lips, ocean colored orbs taking a pleasant spark as gloom and momentum sadness dissipated away. A shy blush tinted her cheeks and her attention leisurely drifted to the sand beneath and around her feet.

"… To be myself…" she murmured, her thoughts swallowing her such as the warmth of his presence did. Never before had words touched her so deeply, clearing any looming cloud that her teenage doubts could construct. "Kenshin…?" Kaoru's gaze returned to his and met his gentle violet eyes.

The moment stretched the young woman's mouth agape in a mute, lonely conversation. He would never know what her query consisted of. Light glimmered in her eyes and a loud explosion sound torn through his eardrums. The first firework had been set off, illuminating the night sky with brilliant sparks of silver and blue, casting colored light on her face, now turned skyway. An expression of awe graced the girl's features, the light reflecting in her blue eyes.

With one last look to Kaoru's pretty face, Kenshin turned his attention to the luminous performance in the dark velvet of the night sky. Mrs. Hirazawa was a skilled coordinator. She had managed, with little money and amateur's explosive, to give the students an impressive light show.

They watched in comfortable silence as colors danced in the sky. Students in the back were cheering loudly. '_Ohhhh_'-s and '_Ahhhh_'-s became a commune expression of their awe, many whistling and more clapping their hands with hoots of appreciation, demanding more. Half way through the light show, the History teacher demanded a talk with Kenshin and he was forced to bid Kaoru a pleasant evening. The conversation he had with his colleague left him with even more conflicting feelings then he thought possible.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Later that night, when all had retired for some much needed rest and only a few campfires still warmed embers, Kenshin stood by the sea bank. His feet bare, allowing the chilling waves to caress his skin, his deep violet fixing the night pearl cut in half, pinned upon a clear starlit sky. His mind, however, was elsewhere.

Hirazawa Mizushi's words caused the young teacher's thoughts to collide and transform into a sleep-depriving mold of confusion. Aside of preparative for the morrow's departure, the dry woman mentioned the rumors about Kenshin and Miss Kamiya Kaoru. Mizushi expressed her displease about the student's lack of respect toward the exchanged student, but she also warned him. It seemed that the friendliness he expressed for the blue-eyed girl fueled the vile tongue's stories. Decomposing her line of words, Kenshin knew that Mrs. Hirazawa clearly meant that he should keep his distance from the young woman.

The stern woman appeared dry and accusing, leading the redheaded man to believe she might have some suspicions. She even referred to his wife to further her point. Kenshin had reacted according to his self. He smiled politely and assured his colleague that her worries were unfound.

Thought, were they? Had he not kissed the girl six days prior? He had to face the facts. The raven-haired young woman had caught more then the teacher's attention. He did not know what to do at this point, wondering just how it all got to this. Through the week, Kenshin had fled over-thinking by occupying his mind with different matters, the trial being a good excuse to forget about Kaoru. However, his efforts more often then not turned barren, thoughts converting toward the blue-eyed girl one way or another.

At night, the redhead would wake to watch her breath and slumber gently. The sight was heartwarming and soothing, but oh so wrong. Or so it appeared. Kenshin almost felt like a voyeur. Society's prescribed virtues tormented him and reaped his resting hours away. He knew the more time he spent with the lovely girl, the more the probability for his sanity string to snap became certitude. How long would he resist his attraction?

There was also this part of him wondering if those maddening feelings he underwent were not caused by his failing marriage or the lack of '_cuddling_' as Sano once paraphrased. Sexual attraction toward a woman was completely natural, and if it were just that, Kenshin could work with it and keep ignoring the needs until temptation would graduate. But he was nearly persuaded there was more to it than it first appeared.

No, this first impression of want and lust only to patch the holes Tomoe's indifference made had been eliminated countless times by little details that made a world of differences. Idle thoughts of her, remembering her beautiful eyes when she saw an ice-cream cone or a seagull always managed to warm his heart. Sometimes he wished the young woman were there with him. He even caught himself almost buying something because Kaoru might have liked it. Was this love? He was afraid to answer. Not ready yet for the consequences of such an admission, even if it was only to his heart and no one else.

In the end, the old saying seemed to ring true to his ears. _Only tomorrow will tell_. However, the young teacher was not sure if he wanted the next day's oracle to bring him the answers. Kenshin sighed, turning his back to the sea and picking his shoes.

"What a coward…" He whispered to the saline breeze.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Kenshin watched a bird fly by, high in the sky. He wished he was one of those and be able to escape the impending afternoon's purgatory. Surprisingly, what upset him had nothing and all to do with his dinner at his godfather's dojo. The young teacher did have a deep respect for the man that acted like the father he never had, but a certain detail was frustrating him. It was as if fate had a grudge against him.

The teacher sighed and stole a glance to his right. Kaoru was stretching in an empty seat, scratching her jaw and yawning. He could tell that the girl yearned for some exercising by the way she swung her legs, trying to chasse boredom away by occupying her mind on the passing scenery she could observed through her window. Thankfully, they were reaching the outskirts of Kyoto and they would soon all be able to leave the yellow machine of ennui.

His wristwatch showed three in the afternoon. The dreaded time was approaching faster than he deemed necessary. Closing his eyes, the young man sighed again. Things were getting much more difficult then they used to be in the spawn of the last few months. He could not concentrate fully on crucial matters and was always distracted by something or another -- foremost the other than the former. The perspective of spending the evening with Seijuro Hiko felt like swallowing bad medicine, especially with the turmoil boiling his mind.

The bus came to a stop, the engine dieing soon after and students woke their lethargic muscles to move out of the vehicle. In the school's parking lot, cars lined up along with smiling faces of parents and relatives all too happy to see their kids back from their weeklong voyage to the ocean. Kaoru took a quick glance around, probably looking for either one of her aunts.

When he stepped out, the blue-eyed girl was gathering her belongings with a small frown. He glanced around finding no sign of either of the brazen pair. Could they possibly have forgotten their niece? He watched her walk to the school gate, saw her drop her load and fall quite heavily atop the pile, waiting.

A parent came to him with questions about his son and Kenshin slipped back into his teacher's skin. One after the other, the teenagers left, the chorus of shouts and excited chatter dieing down and the parking lot emptied. When family and students alike no longer solicited the redhead and that the bus and driver had been paid and sent off, Kaoru was still sitting by the gate, her head resting on a hand.

"Miss Kaoru?" he called out, closing in on her.

She twisted her head around and offered him a weak smile. "Kenshin, why are you still here?"

"I should ask you the same, that I should." He retorted, amused.

"I'm waiting," she answered. "But they probably are busy at the restaurant…" she added more to herself.

Kaoru did not sound upset, however, she was not happy.

"Could I offer you my help then, Miss Kaoru?"

She hesitated and Kenshin somehow felt rather nervous. He wanted to scold himself for reacting such a way.

"I guess… If it's not too much of a trouble for you."

He smiled. "It's not a problem, that it is not. I have to pass by there to get somewhere else."

Kaoru nodded. "Thank you very much, Kenshin."

A fresh smile adorned her pretty face and caused her teacher's heart to summersault. While it was anything but new, the cause of it was. Maybe it had not been such a good idea after all. Still, he guided the young woman to his car, picking her heavy military bag, landing her a hand. She thanked him with a light blush that surprised even her and followed.

The ride to Kaoru's home resumed in few word exchanges and slight discomfort knotting nerves between Kenshin's spinal disks. The radio murmured popular songs, hushing the old engine, filling the void left by non-existent conversations. They pulled into the building's parking lot and the redhead pulled the key out of the ignition. He gave his passenger a light smile and pushed his door open.

"I'll help you get your belongings inside." He said.

Kenshin felt incredibly awkward. Somehow, it sounded as if he were in need for excuses to follow her in. Maybe he was fetching for a way to delay the dreaded dinner. None the less, he grabbed the green military pack and pulled it out, shoving it over his shoulder and closed the door, waiting for Kaoru to lead the way.

"Thank you Kenshin."

The raven-haired girl climbed the row of concrete steps that lead to the entry door. She stepped in, her teacher not far behind and made her way to the second story. When she reached her door, she froze for a moment. A small onomatopoeic expression of surprise escaped her lips.

"Kenshin… Could you give me my bag?"

"Is there a problem?" He asked, concerned.

"As a matter of fact… there is a small one." She explained, a hand already groping inside the pack, a frown hardening her features. "My aunts are away and will return only tonight." She grumbled, searching blindly.

Kenshin looked up. Pinned on the door was a hand written paper note. The teacher nodded and observed his student, now pulling various articles out of the pockets, signs of irritation appearing one after the other.

"No…" She whispered.

Her researches turned frantic. Kaoru switched bag, empting her backpack the way she had her military bag. She growled, bit her lip, and chewed the inside of her cheek. Soon, the complete contents of her bags laid in the stairway in a somewhat organized mess. Kenshin stood beside her, watching her dig most everything out, ending up holding quite a few things himself.

"No… no, no, no, no!" She had practically shouted the long string of negative, shaking her head in disbelieve.

Out of frustration, Kaoru kicked the old empty yellow school bag before falling sitting on a stair, a hand coming to her forehead, levering her head.

"Stupid…" She muttered in a long, frustrated groan.

"Miss Kaoru?" He inquired, concerned.

She sighed once more before she looked up at him. "I forgot my key…"

The young teacher blinked. "You forgot…"

She nodded. "It's probably on my bedside desk…"

"So…?"

"My aunts are out of town for the day. They'll only be back by midnight, or so that thing says." She explained pointing at the note and growled. "I'm locked out of my house for the rest of the day…"

Kenshin hid a smile of amusement. Squatting down, he took hold of the backpack and, one thing after the other, he pulled every article back in. Kaoru gave him an inquisitive look.

He shrugged, "I can't possibly leave you here alone for…" he took a quick glance at his watch, "7 hours, that I can't."

"But…"

"Miss Kaoru, I do not wish to suppose anything, but I don't believe you have many solutions to your problem."

"I know but…" she could not form a complete protest, for some reason, he would not allow her.

The truth was, she really did not wish to stay in the staircase or sitting by the entry door waiting for Tae and Sae's return. Besides, the young woman would soon be hungry and not a yen graced her pockets.

"Then what?" asked Kaoru.

Picking the last item and zipping the old bag, he looked at her with a gentle smile. "I have a dinner to attend tonight. It would be an honor if you joined us."

Kaoru blinked. "Dinner?"

The redheaded nodded, now filling the green military bag. "Unless you wish to stay here, wait and starve…"

It took but a second if deliberation, and soon after, the two of them were driving down the roads of Kyoto toward the old Hiten Mitsurugi dojo. Little did Kenshin know of the consequences in bringing the talented girl to his childhood home.

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**_I remember that I wrote this chapter with ease and frustration as well. Especially the first part. Things were getting a little rough in my life and it was sucking up most of my creativity. It took a certain amount of time, I remember, after writing this chapter for me to get back on my feet and start to write again. Story-wise, chapter 11 is some sort of transition. I think the chapter actually marks the middle of the story as well (but I'm seriously not sure at the moment). It's the chapter before everything. Before the dinner, before the love, before the trial… It doesn't give much, but it serves well as a tension builder for Kenshin. You tell me what you think._**

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**_Eden_****_'s Epitaph_**

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_Edited by Guardian Forever_


	13. Of Morality and Mind Disorder

**Warnings: None.**

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**_Honeysuckles and Moonlight Shreds_**

_By Eden's Epitaph_

Chapter 12: _Of Morality and Mind Disorder_

Yahiko laid back to the floor, legs against the tearoom's shoji frame, frustration and boredom a heavy burden. The 10-years-old still had mixed opinions over his new foster-father. It was hard to tell if the tall sake-lover was either a helpless narcissist with alcoholic behavior or just an '_ass_'. The bulky man seemed to have taken a certain pleasure in angering his new charge and made sure to win every argument in a humiliating sort of way.

Since he set foot into the old dojo, Yahiko had been referred to as kid, brat, boy, whinny piglet, capital annoyance, lazy moron and many more, but his real name was rarely ever at use. Sanosuke was right; the damn giant was a tyrant. Out of frustration, the boy's flat of hand connected loudly with the wooden floor in a furiously resounding slap. It stung and he cursed flipping into a crossed-leg sitting position.

Yahiko was not used to do chores aside of keeping his room in a relatively clean state. Now, he spent all of his free time scrubbing the already sparkling floor of the dojo and house, dusting shelves and furniture while his foster father just sat doing nothing. The boy frowned. The stupid adult had a power that he thought only Tomoe held over him. A frightening authority.

The youth leaned back against the doorframe shifting to a pensive attitude. This place was not so bad when he thought about it with a cleared mind. The place was much more comfortable then the meek apartment Yahiko shared with his uncle in the less favored parts of Kyoto. Used to poverty, the young boy found himself rather impressed by the luxury of his new home. He would never miss a meal out of food lacking, his room was twice the side of his old one and filled with toys and gadgets a kid his age would die for. On the other hand, he rarely ever got the time to enjoy them.

There also was a certain feel of mystery surrounding the old kendo school. Yahiko had watched his foster father teach kendo to kids and adults alike and something about it felt odd. The man was extremely skilled and the boy could easily understand the respect the '_Sensei_' got from his students. But the style he taught did not nearly look like what Kenshin performed. When the 10-years-old had inquired on the matter with his guardian, the man simply laughed calling the Writing and Literature teacher an untalented moron that had nothing much to do with _Hiten Mitsurugi_ than a dragon fly.

Had Yahiko known more of analogies, he might have caught the shy praise underlying the insult.

There was another oddity in the _Hiten Mitsurugi _dojo but this one hid within the house. Upon his arrival, the narcissist man had greeted Yahiko by the gate, a western woman standing by his side with an amiable smile. She had a soft face gently framed by short red hair. Her skin was rather pale, as if she rarely ever faced the sun. Her name was Lily-Ann Randlett and Yahiko had all the troubles in the world pronouncing those foreign syllables.

Lily-Ann was a mysterious woman. Yahiko had trouble telling her age, she was distant most of the time, her face taking a daydream quality more often then not. She spent most of her time in the attic where the boy supposed her room was. Sometimes, when he was sweeping the dojo, he could see her thin features in the only window of the attic a far-away look on her pale face.

His foster-father spent a lot of time in her company. She was the only person he would speak gently to and oddly enough, was at her every attention. It almost seemed as if the man with an ego the size of Mont Fuji treated her like a queen of some sort. Not that Yahiko was jealous of her pedestal position but it all just seemed so strange. When he questioned his guardian, the man roughly pushed the matter aside.

Every night, Lily-Ann would dine with them. She ate little, but Yahiko suspected it was the comfort of a familial dinner that she enjoyed and not the food, which tasted like yesterday's garbage anyway. She would laugh at the kid's tantrums, highly entertained by his arguments with the tall kendo _sensei._

"Yahiko." Said a soft voice, heavy in western accent.

Thinking of the devil…

"Yahiko." She repeated.

The boy sighed, turned his head in the woman's direction and had a moment of surprise. Through the week, he had seen the woman wearing simple garment such as long skirts and pastel colored shirts, nothing flashy or '_fashionable_' but conservative and it fit her quite nicely. In all, it was quite difficult to notice what she wore upon her skin. Tonight was an exception. A colorful summer dress gave her a healthy glow that shown right into her earth colored eyes. She radiated a gentle joy.

"Um… Hi Miss Lily-Ann…" he stuttered, still having difficulties in being polite, the word 'Miss' tasting rather strange in his mouth.

"Dinner." She informed him with a smile then turned about to leave. "Soon," she then added as an afterthought.

"Um… Miss Lily-Ann?" The inquiry made her stop and look at him. "Why you dressed up so nice tonight?"

She did some sort of a cross between a giggle and a laugh and started walking as she answered. "Guests."

He got to his feet and blinked. "Guests?"

Curious, the spiky headed pre-teen followed the redheaded woman down the corridor to the dinner room. A mouth-watering aroma tinted the air steering confusion for the 10-years-old. The worst part of this new living arrangement would probably be the giant man's cooking skills. Most everything was either over or under-cooked. Boiled rubber probably tasted better then the meals he served them. So if his guardian had not cooked, then who did?

Lily-Ann already sat at her usual place, kneeling such as only a true _geiko_ would, elegant with an air of mystery surrounding her thin frame. It was surprising how a foreign woman managed to assimilate their culture so easily, becoming in an odd way a nearly perfect icon of the Japanese culture. It gave the boy a strange feeling of aw and discomfort like a mildly cold respect that he could not quite understand the foundation.

She stared at an empty plate at her left. Yahiko noted that the table had been set for five and that the fancy china was displayed for the occasion. A large basket of well-cooked rice set beside her, still fuming. The woman turned her head in his direction and smiled, motioning him to take a seat.

"Where's the mountain-guy?" He asked her. At her puzzled expression, the boy sighed. "Hiko." He corrected sourly.

"Restaurant."

"Take out?"

She nodded and smiled. "Back soon."

Yahiko sat and glanced into the rice basket with curiosity. "Who cooked the rice then?"

Pride seemed to swell in the woman's brown eyes. "Lily-Ann."

The boy raised a surprised eyebrow then shrugged and took his place just as his foster father walked into the dinning room. A towering pile of packages, each smelling even more deliciously then the other was kept in precarious balance within his arms. A slightly frustrated expression adorned his sharp face.

"Give me a hand, brat." He barked.

"I've got a name…" grumbled the kid, getting up none the less.

Soon, the take-out was displayed in a rather tasteful way upon the dinning table under the soft direction of Lily-Ann. As she put the last touch to the display, a voice well known to the young boy came from the lobby.

"I'm home, that I am."

Joy lit Lily-Ann's face. "Kenshin!"

Hiko smirked having recognized his godchild the second he heard the front door slid open -- the man had the most sensitive hearing Yahiko ever witnessed. And surely, not a minute after, the smiling face of the red-headed popped out from the dinner room door.

"Glad you made it, _baka-deshi_." Taunted the kendo master.

"Good evening _Shishou_." Politely greeted Kenshin.

"Kenshin?" Exclaimed a surprised Yahiko, not expecting the high school teacher to be the mysterious guest.

"Hello Yahiko, how are you?"

"…I'm… ok. What are you doing here?" he asked, bewildered.

"You didn't tell him?" The question was meant for Hiko. The man simply huffed, sat and poured himself a cup of sake. "This is my childhood home, that it is."

"I know that! The other idiot told me before I moved in… I meant…"

"Kenshin!" Lily-Ann had, meanwhile, gotten up from her seat and thrown herself in Kenshin's arms.

"Hello mother… I missed you to, that I did."

"Mother?" To the 10-years-old, that was the biggest surprise of the day, if not of his short life.

Of course, now looking at them, he could see the resemblance. The red hair, the fine features, the refined demeanors, they were very much alike.

"Um…" uttered a somewhat familiar feminine voice from behind Kenshin.

The youth turned his attention toward the doorway. Hiko raised an eyebrow in surprise --this would reveal to be quite interesting. There stood a black-haired and blue-eyed girl, her gaze -- usually confident -- soften by shyness. Yahiko recognized her almost instantly. It was, as the boy had secretly labeled her, Kenshin's pet-student, Kamiya Kaoru. Simply standing behind her teacher, twisting her fingers in earnest discomfort and looking everywhere but at them, the girl was rather aware of the oddity of her presence in the redhead's childhood home.

"What are _you_ doing here, old hag?" scuffed Yahiko, not quite happy to see the young woman.

Kaoru frowned and opened her mouth to shout some venomous retort but the gentle pressure of Kenshin's hand on her shoulder eased her anger almost instantly.

"I invited her, that I did." He explained. "There seemed to be…"

But an exclamation of joy from the short haired woman cut his sentence in half.

"Miss Tomoe!"

Merely a second spanned and Kaoru found herself in a strong, motherly embrace, nearly chocking and mouth agape. Was not Tomoe the name of Kenshin's wife? Dumbfound, the young high school student limply returned the affective gesture, stealing a glance toward her teacher.

"Mother… she's not…" Started Kenshin, but his mother's blinded enthusiasm could not be broken.

"Happy." She said, almost teary eyed. "Very."

"Err…" Stammered the young woman, blinking. "I'm not… that is… My name's not…"

Someone's laughter interrupted the madness. Questioning gazes turned to the muscular man sitting casually at the table, a pair of chopsticks in on hand, a bowlful of rice in the other.

"You are the famous Kamiya Kaoru." chuckled Hiko giving the girl an eye over.

"Oro?" Kenshin turned a surprised and not so surprised at the same time look to his godfather.

"The rooster has a too big of a mouth for his own good." Was the man's only explanation.

Lily-Ann blinked once, examining Kaoru's somewhat embarrassed face. "Miss Tomoe?" She inquired.

"Mother, this is my friend Kamiya Kaoru, not my wife." Explained Kenshin, his tone soft and reassuring. Kaoru could not quite understand why there was such confusion and simply stared at them both.

"Not?"

The young man simply shook his head. The short-haired woman seemed saddened for a moment. Her brown eyes sliding to the floor. Yahiko supposed she was thinking, Kaoru thought the woman would start to cry in her arms -- and issued a rather painful scene in the blue-eyed teenager's mind. Then the woman looked up and smiled, hugging the girl once more.

"Pleasure." She said sweetly. "Lily-Ann."

"K… Kaoru." Sutured the teenager, glancing toward her teacher, puzzled.

Her lips curved sweetly, the gentle glow in her eyes, almost admiring, Kaoru's confidence swelled and a glorious smile spread across her mouth. A rough cough gained their attention, Hiko had a plate of sweet teriyaki chicken and brilliantly cooked noodles, casually offering them the food, as if it was nothing more then simple, white rice.

"If none of you is hungry then I'll take this." His said in an aloof tone.

"_Shishou_!" exclaimed a slightly indignant Kenshin, lavender eyes wide.

The man smiled victoriously, Lily-Ann giggled and Yahiko growled before finding his seat to dive into the meal with a nearly desperate abandon. Grinning, Kenshin and his mother took their place, the teacher instructing the moderately stunned teenager to sit at the remaining plate beside the spiky headed boy. She blinked then shrugged, a mellow smile tugging her cheeks and sat down, reaching for her chopsticks.

"I heard some of you, Kamiya." started Hiko, eyeing the young lady.

"Really?" she looked up, puzzled. "From whom?" she barely knew a soul in Kyoto aside eccentric aunts, sweet teacher and stupid classmates. In front of her, she observed a slight discomfort in Kenshin's stance. Was that shock in his eyes?

"The brat's uncle."

Kaoru quirked an eyebrow, did she know that boy's uncle? From where… when?

"Sanosuke." uttered Kenshin, almost mocking his idiocy.

A flash of a gruff looking tall man pestering on Yahiko came to her mind. "Ah!" She exclaimed. "I only saw him once…" She said innocently.

Hiko chuckled. "His the idiot's best friend." He explained. " '_A__ crazy kicking girl with a temper of a tomboy_' was his exact words."

Kaoru felt the red heat her face as anger gripped her guts. "I'm not a tomboy!" She defended childishly.

Yahiko snickered and Lily-Ann turned her attention to the black-haired girl instead of her eating tools, which she had some struggles with earlier. Kenshin observed, half worried, half amused. Hiko only taunted those he appreciated, but never before had he did so to a complete stranger. Come to think of it, the young man remembered to have opened quite easily to the sky-colored-eyed girl.

"I see that." Said Hiko, sarcasm apparent enough for Kaoru to slightly notice it, discovering the bait underneath it.

She smiled and reached for a steaming plate of food. "Thank you." Kaoru said, amiably, no false in her tone, not admitting her defeat but leaving the battlefield for the moment.

Hiko smiled in return, all arrogance thrown away and plain friendliness on his sharp face. "I can see what my stupid god-brat sees in you."

The girl smiled. "I'll take that as a compliment." She said laughing before stuffing her mouth. The rest of the dinner was spent in playful talk and cheerful ambiance. Kenshin could remember the last time he had such a pleasant dinner with his family… back before he fell into some momentary madness.

"Kenshin?" Kaoru's soft voice steered him from his thought. Lily-Ann was looking at him with motherly worrying eyes and the feeling was similar in that of the girl sitting before him. "Are you alright?" She inquired.

Pulling on a smile, he scratched the back of his head. "I got lost in thought, that I did." He explained.

The raven-haired girl looked at him once more before returning to her plate. Hiko observed silently, Kenshin's mother bit her lips and Yahiko blinked in confusion. The redhead waved it off, starting the conversation anew with details of the last few months. Kaoru listened, noting that some parts were uttered in a secretive tone that only one involved in could discern. Was she suddenly part of a conspiracy she was not ever aware existed in her teacher's life?

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Later that evening, as the sun was about to set, casting orange and turquoise rays over the clouds, Hiko took his godchild apart. It was not unusual for Kenshin and Hiko to shut off in the tea room, but tonight something was off. Yahiko was outside with Kaoru, both bickering at each other over everything and nothing. They actually seemed to enjoy the evening quite thoroughly such as brother and sister would.

"I'm worried about you." Said the large man, pouring the tea Lily-Ann had brewed before joining the kid and the blue-eyed girl.

"Worried?" Inquired the redhead.

"Wasn't your wife supposed to accompany you?"

Kenshin blinked, "And I told you that she was away and not to be back in…"

Hiko arched a mocking eyebrow, hiding his smirk behind his teacup. "You don't even remember when Tomoe's supposed to come back."

The young man looked down at the green liquid swirling in the cup and smiled sadly. "Two months." He murmured. The older man stared at his godchild watching his distorted reflection on the swirling tea. "Tomoe will be back in two months, that she will."

"There is still no change between the two of you?" It may not be apparent, but Hiko cared a lot for the redheaded high school teacher who he raised such as his own son. He still wanted the stupid airhead to be happy.

"She's… colder. I don't think we can go on like this pretty much longer." explained Kenshin, feeling the weight of it all press on his shoulder heavily. How he wished his teenage years had been less reckless!

"Hum…" Hiko was thoughtful for a moment. "And the girl?"

"What do you mean?" Kenshin feigned ignorance, but Hiko knew that the slightly darkening of the violet eyes spoke otherwise.

"You're an adult." The tall man said, dismissively. "Just remember she's not."

Kenshin frowned stealing a glance toward the window. It was ajar and a soft breeze seeped in through the gap, along with a joyful and carefree laughter and growled insolence from an angered Yahiko. He realized, with a little help from the gruff kendo teacher he had as a father figure that he had come to a point where decisions were to be made. His situation, this situation if not taken cared of would be his complete demise… and that of his wife.

"And Yahiko?" asked Kenshin, starving for a less intimate subject to discuss, a headache about to be born.

"The brat's a real pain…" groaned the black-haired man, taking another swing of tea. "I don't understand why the Rooster wants to keep such an aggravation."

Kenshin snickered. "It's a family matter that we were all dragged into… But I believe it to be a good thing for Sano to keep Yahiko's guardianship." The redhead smiled, memories reeling back to mind. "It changed him in a very good way, that it did."

Hiko eyed him skeptically. "I doubt anything could really change that moron."

Kenshin shook his head. "You saw it too."

The bulky man laughed and finished his cup. "Maybe…"

A happy voice could be heard outside, a single word uttered joyfully from a woman who wished she could say more. Kenshin's purple gaze sobered and took a foggy quality. '_Watermelon_' she had said and he heard Yahiko shout and a startled cry from Kaoru who, he supposed, had been rubbed of her piece of fruit.

"How does she do?" Kenshin suddenly asked, both men knowing to whom the _she_ referred.

"She isolates herself less often lately. I never really knew what she does in there. She'd never spoke of it. That woman's secrecy is as irritating as your ability to attract problems." said Hiko sarcastically.

"She seems happy though."

"Since the brat came in, it's as if you had returned in some way." He explained. "She wants to cook more often but I simply can't let her do too much or else she would strain herself. It seems to sadden her some but… Well… Lily-Ann had been a mystery to all of us, even before her stroke."

"Yeah…"

"Sorry…" Whispered a soft voice from the doorway.

Kaoru, feeling somehow as if she had finally returned home, had wandered around the dojo and house. Her eyes had darken, less shining like a warm cloudy summer night, as she stumbled upon Kenshin and Hiko's discussion. It seemed she heard something that made her feel uncomfortable for as soon as the men turned to look at her, the girl's cloudy gaze had retreated to the tatami covered floor.

"Miss Kaoru?" murmured a surprised Kenshin.

Hiko smirked -- that girl had a similar particularity with his godchild.

"I didn't mean to intrude… But… um." Kaoru stumbled over her words, cheeks reddened, ashamed of her curiosity.

"I'll see if there's some of that watermelon left… if the piglet hasn't devoured it yet." announced the older man. He smiled knowingly at the girl as he walked by her to step on the porch, only to see a slightly puzzled expression on her face.

"You don't have to apologize." Kenshin had returned to a more casual position, his hands cupping his drink to take a sip of the refreshing tea. "Would you like a cup?" He then offered.

"Gladly…" She walked to the table and sat where Hiko once throne, the redhead handed her a fresh cup of mint brew. "Can I ask you a question?" Her inquiry was soft but not pressing.

"Of course." He said, completely at ease.

"How did it happen?"

Kenshin looked at her then back at the open shoji and the ruffling greens of the trees surrounding the backyard. "The doctors truthfully don't know, I always had my suspicions." He started.

Kaoru held her breath tying to keep her tongue from asking more. The teacher rarely ever talked of himself. She, on the other hand, had more than once retailed memories and facts of her most private life without even a thought. If Kenshin did not talk much, there was a reason and she had to abide to it. But he continued.

"My father disappeared when I was 4. Not a warning, not a suspicion, nothing. As if he vanished into thin air. _Shishou_ says it was in his nature." The redhead sighed and smiled sadly. "Suddenly, my mother, who was unemployed, was alone with her son and no income. With her foreign origins she had trouble to find and keep a job. I don't know how many she did…" He marked another pose remembering some tiny moments. "When I turned 10, _Shishou_ picked me up after school, for the usual kendo classes… but never drove me back home."

Kenshin took a sip and gave Kaoru a reassuring look. She smiled, her fingers dancing over the smooth porcelain of her cup. He continued.

"My mother was a cook for a rather good restaurant back then. _Shishou_ told me that she collapsed while she had been working. At first I thought stress has gotten to her, I didn't even know what a stroke was, that I did not."

"Was the lump around the memory aria?" Kaoru asked.

He nodded. "And the motor control as well. For years she had to relearn everything and regained only a fraction of what she can do."

"You…" Kaoru murmured, "think it has something to do with all she did for you…" Again the redhead shook his head. "Idiot!"

He blinked, not expecting such a forcefully shouted insult. "Oro."

The girl took a calming breath and, her eyes bright and clear, looked at him. "She's much stronger then that." Said the raven-haired girl. "Don't you see she still work so very hard for you and how happy you made her when we arrived?"

Delicate strands of midnight silk slipped and veiled her gaze to him, but her voice… her voice changed so much. "I never saw a mother with so much love in her eyes. When she looks at you it's as if her whole world turned suddenly brighter as if…" she paused a moment and Kenshin realised he was entranced by her voice. She sounded older, wiser and that sweet undertone of tenderness touched and warmed his heart. "It's as if she was relieved of all worries and… she looked proud and happy."

"Miss Kaoru…" He stuttered, "I…"

"'_Desuki__ desu_'"

Purple eyes widened and blinked, had he uttered such words? He had no idea what it was he meant to tell the young woman. But Kaoru was not looking at him. Kenshin was not the one who to declare affection for his colourful student. Her pretty head dotted to the left, her cerulean depths mirroring his expression before a smile stretched her lovely features.

"I like you too, Miss Lily-Ann." She said, standing to stride the few steps separating her from the frail looking foreign woman and warped gentle arms around her.

Kenshin's mother smiled. She seemed, for that moment, thoroughly happy and satisfied. Affectionately, she kissed the younger girl on the forehead and he could see thee pride Kaoru spoke of in those warm brown eyes as they turned on him.

"Kenshin," she said. "Lucky."

Before the young man could inquire into the meaning of his mother's words, someone else's voice broke in from the yard. It was childish, it was mischievous… it was disrespectful.

"Hey! Old hag, come quick before I finish off your watermelon pieces!"

The red rose to Kaoru's face such as magma would a nearly bursting volcano. "Little worm!" She cried and stormed away, a violent onslaught of venomous words in mouth, all of them directed to a single target, and just about ready to act on them.

Lily-Ann laughed a laugh his son had not heard in a long time. "Spirit…" she muttered enigmatically and walked away.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Bug life chirped cheerfully in the back yard of _Hiten Mitsurugi Dojo_ and the soothing calm of the night pressed against five individuals like a warm comforter on a cosy bed. It was comforting, thought Kenshin, listening to Hiko's larger then life stories puncture every now and then by Yahiko's sharp comments.

Earlier, the crimson-haired man had accompanied his student to a tour around the house. He had shared with her some found memories of his sporadic childhood. Kaoru happily added some of her own. The dojo was last to be showed and the young woman marvelled at the collection of training boken and ancient _katana_, _wasashi_ and _kodashi_ displayed over the walls. Rows of wooden plaques sporting, in careful hiragana, the many names of students lined the wooden walls.

"Our dojo had nearly half as much…" She had murmured, impressed. "Ah! Isn't that your name, Kenshin? No wonder…" and her cheeks tinted, such as his.

Yahiko's rash interruption happened to be quite welcomed when Kenshin's evil memory summoned vivid images and sensation of an afternoon not so long ago. A playful argument morphed into a boken lesson for the spiky headed boy and the high tempered poetess -- and kendo instructor. Surprisingly, the boy showed more talent then the redhead had imagined but none the less ended up harshly admitting defeat to a beaming Kaoru.

When Hiko barged in to announce that Onogiri was waiting for them, the girl stole a glance at her watch and exclaimed, rather surprised, that her aunts were probably back home and probably worrying over her absence. Yahiko was ordered, to his utter frustration, to lead the girl -- who had earlier humiliated him with a wooden sword -- to the telephone. Task done, the spiky headed youth had returned to stuff his face on the rice cakes with a nearly wolfish appetite.

"Kenshin."

Looking behind him, he found Kaoru, trouble swarming her eyes. "Is there a problem Miss Kaoru."

"I called home and there was a message for me on the answering machine." When she started to twist her finger, he knew there was something bothering her. "They won't be back before tomorrow."

Now that was… unexpected. "Ah…" He stuttered. What should he do?

"They left a number I could call if I had trouble with something." There was uncertainty in her voice that troubled him. "I think I'll call them and maybe Tae or Sae will come and unlock the door for me…" And now embarrassment clung to her voice. Kaoru was about to turn and make the call she seemed reluctant to do.

"You can sleep at my apartment." He blurted out, almost unaware he did and wondering why he could not stop himself from offering -- something told him it was a very bad idea at the moment.

"I could…? It won't be too much trouble for you?"

Kenshin smiled, shoving the looming feelings aside. "I have a very comfortable couch, that I do."

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**_I had a fair amount of fun writing this chapter, I remember. It was just barely after I started to walk out of a particularly hard moment in my life and it had felt wonderful to write a bit of silliness. Of the three Original Characters that I had to create for this story, Lily-Ann is one of my favourite. She is not exceptionally important and acts more like a clue for Kenshin's past than anything else but I must admit that I find her quite intriguing. I must thank a friend – who is now probably near or already picking coffee beans in _****_Peru_****_ – for lending me his family name. So thank you Kev, even though I know you'll never read my 'crap'. _**

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**_Eden_****_'s Epitaph_**

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_Edited by Guardian Forever_


	14. Midnight Strands of Sinful Silk

**Warnings: This chapter is not suitable for people under the suggested age of 17. I shall not be held responsible for under aged readers. **

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**_Honeysuckles and Moonlight Shreds_**

_By Eden's Epitaph_

Chapter 13: _Midnight__ Strands of Sinful Silk_

"Clean…"

Kaoru described, with a simple word, the tidy interior of Kenshin's sparse home. Only the necessary allowed, in soft tones of blue and dots of yellow here and there. Everything sparkled, not a trace of dust on the shelves, no wayward objects, not testament of actual living beings residing besides, maybe, the invisible maid. Stunned, the young woman stole a side-glance from her teacher, wondering if that man was truly happy. He smiled and closed the door before taking his shoes off.

"Do you need to clean your clothes?" He asked and she blinked.

"Ah…" she muttered. "Y… yes actually I was about to ask."

"Allow me to help you." He offered, lifting the arm that griped the green military bag.

Kaoru blushed, those were her clothes… and _under_clothes he held in his hand. "Th… Thank you." The girl had not felt this awkward since… was it only a week? Somehow, it felt like forever.

"Tell you what," he said playfully. "Laundry is actually my favourite chore… but don't tell anyone."

She giggled, "I don't know why I'm not surprised."

Just like that, the tension the black-haired young woman had felt had disappeared leaving only that peaceful comfort she found in the amethyst-eyed teacher's presence.

"Make yourself at home." Came the friendly invitation from the laundry room down the hall where Kenshin disappeared. "There should be pillows and fresh blankets in the cupboard in front of the bedroom."

Kaoru's hand reached for the knob of the placard but her attention found solicitation within the room behind. Carefully, silently, she pushed the door left ajar to reveal a simple, well-kept bedroom. Plainly crafted in pinewood, the furniture was delicate and massive all at once. The carefully polished surface shown in dark honey hews slightly tinted of oranges as it reflected a ray of a mercury streetlamp light. The bed looked soft and cosy, the white comforter fluffing like a cloud pierced in one straight line by a deep blue bed-wide pillow. The light teal walls gave it all an appeasing feel. On each side, small tables supported a pair metallic lamps but the one of the right had, in addition, an ancient-looking alarm clock and four discarded books piled carelessly.

Feeling as if she were praying into the bright-headed man's privacy, the girl took a few steps, tempted to test that carefully made bed. Hers was old with pricking springs here and there while his seemed so inviting. She let her finger glide over the cotton coverall of the comforter, realising with a smile that it was stuffed with down.

"Miss Kaoru?"

The young woman jolted her hand away from the bed and turned around to see Kenshin by the doorway. "I'm sorry!" She exclaimed, feeling as if she was caught hand stocked in the cookie jar.

The man laughed, "Your clothes will be all clean tomorrow morning."

Kaoru feared the veins of her face would pop such the blood rushing up came in massive, hot waves. "Thanks." Feeling embarrassed, she looked back at the bed and took a few steps away. "Y… you have a nice bedroom." Now that sounded quite gauche. "Blue is a nice color…" she murmured now completely and utterly discomfited, where has her brain gone, it never seemed to fail her before.

"I think so too." Agreed the man, lavender eyes at ease and oh so gentle.

"You decorated?"

He nodded. "Beside a few things, most of this is my doing, that it is." He cocked his head to one side and turned to the cupboard. "Though I would much rather sleep on a futon…"

"But your bed looks so comfy…" Kaoru loved futons, but western beddings had that… cloudlike feel. That is, if the mattress was in good shape.

"Would you rather sleep in the bed?" He asked, pulling out a white pillow.

"It's yours." She argued.

Kenshin grinned. "More like Tomoe's. It's her taste in there, though she rarely ever sleeps in it."

Kaoru blinked walking up to him. "How come?"

The fiery-headed man blinked. "She's a stewardess on an airline cruse company and away from Japan most of the year, that she is."

The girl felt odd for a moment. "You mustn't see her much often." She muttered and walked to the living room, her gaze unfocussed.

"Not very much, indeed."

"But you call each other?" She asked now sitting on the couch, her face unusually guarded.

"N… No." stuttered the young man.

Kaoru seemed surprised. "You don't?" He shook his head. "But…"

Kenshin, pillow and blanket in hands, walked to her, his expression sombre and thoughtful, "Not every marriage ends in a '_happily ever after_' of way, Miss Kaoru. Ours was far from a fairy-tale, that it was."

"I'm sorry…" she murmured, suddenly rather uncomfortable. "I didn't mean to…"

"It's alright." He assured her. "I… Don't mind talking about it with you." He then smiled at her and let his load fall to the floor before settling beside the girl.

"You've been together for how long?"

"Nine years… maybe ten… We got married in November…" The redhead turned to the right, watching the streetlight through the glass French doors of his apartment's balcony.

"Was it always like that?" She asked, feeling rather odd to talk about Kenshin's wife knowing very well what dwelled in her heart.

"She has always been the silent type."

Kaoru shook her head. "Even when you first met her?"

The redheaded man smiled. "We were only kids, but I met her because of a common friend of me and Sanosuke."

"Really?"

"Akira was three years older and my school tutor and Tomoe was his neighbour." He explained, remembering quite clearly the carefree times. "Sano used to fight often with his father and ran away once or twice a month. We had been friends ever since elementary school so he always ended up at the dojo. He never cared much about anything academic but _Shishou_ always pressed me to do well in class so I asked Akira." He paused, then looked at her. "I was a part time instructor in a dojo under _Shishou_'s request and Akira was a student there, that's how I met him."

"You were good friends?"

"I'd say more like… friendly acquaintances, that I would…" He answered a tint of mystery in his voice. "One afternoon, Sano had been freeloading on us for three days, and it was near the end of term's exams. I had a tutorial with Akira and Sano tagged along..."

_It was a bight Thursday afternoon. Sano was as full of energy as usual after getting his hands on a large chocolate ice cream bucket from Hiko's personal refrigerator. Kenshin would later get a rough scolding and probably a hellish practice because of his friends delinquent actions, but the 13 years old redhead did not care much. His mother enjoyed watching them spare and actually, that was all that really matter to him. _

_"I'd love to see the tyrant's face when he'll find out that bucket disappeared!" said Sanosuke, a victorious grin on his face._

_"You're not the one suffering the consequences… Have a little pity for me, Sano."_

_The taller boy chuckled. "Sorry man… I just couldn't resist. It practically begged for me to take it. Promise, I won't do it again."_

_"That's what you said last time!"_

_"This time's different." affirmed the spiky headed youth._

_"Really?"_

_He grinned. "This time I mean it!"_

_Kenshin sighed. "Right…"_

_Sano laughed and gave his best friend a rough slap on the back and the smaller boy doubled over, coughing._

_"So… where's that Kyosato guy's place? Heard it was a huge house." _

_"Right in front of you."_

_Akira's house was one of the largest Japanese mansion in __Kyoto__. It was a secret to no one that the Kyosato family was a powerful and highly respected yakuza house, even Sano knew about it. This was probably the only reason why the boy was so incline in following his friend. _

_"Man…" Sano whistled in exaggerated awe. "It's huge!"_

_Kenshin chuckled. "Try not to 'borrow' anything from them, they won't take it lightly, you know." _

_"What do you think? I'm dumb?" At his friend's careful silence Sano frowned. "I'm not stupid!"_

_The redheaded boy laughed and walked to the gate. "Of course not."_

_When he reached the high security entrance of the mansion, Kenshin froze. There was a girl sitting in front of the gate. She had dark, black eyes and a practically emotionless face. She had a graceful coldness about her and radiated patience but when she saw the two boys, she looked up and smiled lightly. _

_"You're here to see Akira-**sempai**?" She asked. "His not home yet."_

_"Where is he?" asked Kenshin, politely, noting that three bento boxes were piled next to the girl. _

_"At a kendo practice."__ She looked at him then stared at the boy's left cheek, and blinked. "You're Himura Kenshin?"_

_"How you know him?" Asked Sano, always so very suspicious. _

_"Akira-**sempai** said you would be here today." explained the girl, although completely ignoring the harsh speaking boy to favour the mild-mannered one. _

_"Though I didn't expect you to be this early, Himura."_

_Akira stood behind Sano with a friendly smile._

_"I saved this for you." The girl took a bento box and offered it to the older boy._

_"You made it yourself?" Akira was blushing and the black haired girl nodded, an almost invisible trace of embarrassment touching her cheeks as well. "Thank you…"_

_Sano nudged Kenshin on the side, snickering at the scene the other two was making. "Ain't that cute." He mocked and the redhead rolled his eyes._

_"You have no right to make fun of my sister!" yelled an angered voice. _

_"Enishi!" scolded the girl with cold authority. "Don't yell like that at people you don't know. You have more respect than that."_

_"But sis… that chicken-like guy was being…" An authoritarian glance from his older sister silenced the boy. Resentful, Enishi sent a murderous glare to Sanosuke before showing Kenshin his tongue and running off to a smaller but just as luxurious house next to the Kyosato's grandiose residence. _

_"Enishi!__ Your bento!" The girl sighed as the boy disappeared. "He's going to run off and just not eat…" _

_Akira laughed. "I don't think your brother would ever change. Father says he'll either become a great man or…" but he censored himself giving the other two boys a side-glance. "Anyway…"_

"Actually, Sano and Akira became rather good friends afterwards and we got to see each other more frequently aside from kendo and school tutoring."

Kaoru had leaned back against the couch. She hugged the white pillow out of pure habitude. Kenshin was right, it was a very comfortable divan.

"So… Tomoe was actually in love with Akira back then?"

The high school teacher nodded. "I learned later on that they were engaged at that time through a family arrangement."

Kaoru blinked. "People still do that?" She was surprised, arranged marriages were of the past, not the present.

"Akira's family was very conservative but I think it was more because Tomoe's father was a renowned lawyer than traditional family joining." He explained. "They were yakuza after all. But Akira once told me he was very happy it turned out to be Tomoe." Kenshin smiled sadly.

"But, Kenshin, why… I mean if she loved Akira and he loved her… and there was an arrangement…"

"Why was I the one marring her in the end?" The man smiled sadly. "Tomoe and I were, if I dare to say so, good friends back then. Enishi, her brother, hated it because he thought I would get between her and Akira. That boy always hated me though I never really understood why. Maybe it was because I too was able to make his sister laugh, a feat that only him and Akira had been able to perform before Sano and I intruded their life. It was fun back then but things changed…"

_"Come on Kenshin, it's quick, easy money, and we're helping Kyosato along the way." Pressed a 15 years old Sanosuke. _

_The young man had just moved into a small two-room apartment and was discussing with his best friend who, at the moment, was more or less aware of the situation. Boxes piled around the living room that also served as the bedroom. A black ashtray on the bedside table was still fuming from a barely finished, oddly smelling cigarette the two just consumed. _

_Kenshin stared at the ceiling with hazed, slightly redden eyes. Filaments of dust hung from the pikes of clay that decorated the above of the meek apartment. His random thoughts scraped the walls of his brain, more or less listening to his best friend blather. On the television was a set of cheep action figures from a popular anime. Sano was collecting them for a few months now. He claimed them to be for his baby brother Outa. A cool breeze slipped through the lone window of the house, above the bed. The yellowish smoke escaped in sinuous cloudy rivers through the gape and the rancid smell vanishing along with it. _

_"It's dangerous…" murmured the small boy._

_He waved a hand above his face, watching it trail in front of his eyes as if in slow motion, an after effect of that smoke, along with the grogginess that warped his mind and a numbing of his muscles. It felt good after school, it helped him to forget how sad his mother seemed to be, the harshness of Hiko's training and the bickering of his classmates. Sanosuke had it easy and Kenshin mused over the idea of dropping out of school as well, rather tired the trouble it caused him._

_"Not with your skills, you're more dangerous than any armed junky out there!" _

_Kenshin had to give his friend a point, he was one tenacious man. If only his ideas were good ones._

_"I already have enough problems with Hiko as it is…" Moaned the amethyst-eyed boy, his usual politeness pushed back in the recess of his mind, another effect of those slim cigarettes the two boys rolled up every afternoon. _

_"He promised to back us up if anything went wrong. Come on, I know we could be the best there is. Besides, weren't you the one who suggested it in the first place?" insisted the spiky headed boy._

_"I'll think about it."_

"Akira's family used to be very powerful but always stood clear until his father was assassinated."

"…Why?" inquired Kaoru.

"Akira's older brother was put in charged and unfortunately we got dragged into stuff we should've stood clear. It really got out of hand."

_"What do you mean he hasn't come home yet?" _

_Kenshin, 17 years old, was talking to a nearly frantic Tomoe standing in his and Sanosuke's apartment doorway. He was worried. The usually serene woman never once lost her calm. It had to be deadly serious. _

_"He said he had something to take care of and left yesterday but he still has to return. Kenshin… I'm really worried. What if…"_

_"He wouldn't be that stupid…!" exclaimed the redhead, his expression turning from friendly to grim._

_Tomoe worried her lips. "He… He said something about finding a clue about Sano's aggressors…"_

Kenshin's face was grim. Bitter memories made the old scars of a reckless youth ach and itch. Strange how small, seemingly harmless things could lead to such an awful, bloody end. Kaoru was still unaware of a few details of the gruesome tale, but she knew enough to understand. It surprised him how she never pressed for answers, how she let him say whatever he wanted, never asking for more. He appreciated it greatly, this quality of her not to pray, a gentle listening ear.

Her blue eyes settled upon him gently, watching as emotions glide across his handsome features before halting to the cross shaped scare that marred his cheeks. Many times before her eyes grazed the unusual marking but never did she dare to ask how it came to be.

"Akira and I got into a lot of trouble because of his brother's insane taste for power." continued Kenshin, too deep in memory to notice his young companion's stare. "It wasn't supposed to turn that way, that it was not." He whispered, his hand reaching for the cruciform mark with nearly trembling fingers. "He died because of my mistake, leaving a pregnant, heart-torn Tomoe behind…"

The expression in his eyes was so heartbreaking. She wanted to mellow that pain she saw deep into those entrancing violet eyes, wanted to erase those cruel memories and create new ones. New joyous, happy and trouble-free memories she somehow knew he longed for. Kaoru reached a quaking hand to his own, covering his chilled fingers with her warm palm, offering some comfort in her own innocent way.

Kenshin turned to look at her and met her soft, tender gaze. Did she know how much he cared for those sincere, soothing clear blue eyes?

"What happened afterward?" Her inquiry was soft, undemanding but shamelessly curious.

He closed his eyes, hand sliding from under hers, which remain cradling the side of his face for a moment before floating away. Kenshin sighed.

"I couldn't leave her alone and morn over her lost love. Everyone warned me, especially Sano. I knew it was a bad idea, but back then, I was… I think I really was in love with her. Seeing her so sad, it hurt deep inside, and with the baby… I just…" He closed his eyes once more and a weary smile curved his lips. "I really didn't expect her to agree when I suggested marrying her instead of Akira. I don't know why… Maybe she did love me a little as well; it all went so fast, that it did. I said it was because she was pregnant and would not leave her to raise a baby without a father. I never was a good liar, but it rang almost true to my ears. We got married, just like that, quite easily and without fuzz." His gaze became distant again. "After three months… or was it four… I came home and found her passed out on the kitchen floor…"

A small gasp escaped the young woman's mouth. Pain was heavy in his voice and trouble clear in his eyes. Fate had been awfully cruel to him.

"Miscarriage…" he muttered. "Just like that, the whole reason why I married her was gone, but I though '_Maybe we can work this out and be happy together_'." He said in a whisper and bowed his head. "For a while, I think we were… but… the flame died much too swiftly and left us both, somehow, trapped."

Warm fingertips brushed over his brow, shoving aside locks of silk-smooth vermilion strands to reveal dark violet eyes, edging on blue and drowning in emotions. They turned to meet her blue ones and saw them sparkling with tenderness. The gentle caress of her fingers as they pushed his hair behind his ear cause warmth to spread across his heart and, soon after, through his whole body, flooding through his veins.

"Kaoru…" he whispered his voice so soft and strangled by emotions so vivid, it barely left room for him to breath.

"I don't know everything, Kenshin." She explained, her expression confident and wise, but so very innocent at the same time. "But I know that Tomoe could never hate a man such as you…" His eyes widened and she smiled sweetly. "I'm sure she loved you…" then pain flashed in her eyes before she closed them, unable to sustain his regard anymore. "And still do… who wouldn't?"

"I…" he stuttered. "Kaoru…" but he could not find words to describe what he felt at that moment.

He wanted to warp his arms around her. That mournful pain her clear blue eyes barely concealed spoke well on its own. He wanted to cradle her, caress those soft tendrils of ink and hush sadness away such as she did with a simple smile. However, a second before he gave into his tempting desire, Kaoru's hand drifted from his face and she pushed her legs to the floor, straightening her body and gave him a cheerful smile that seem so horribly off.

"Kenshin… Do you think I could take a shower?"

The teacher blinked, expecting anything but that request. "Of… Of course… The bathroom is down the hall, second door to your left." He instructed and then got up as well. "I'll get you some fresh clothes, that I will."

He had the feeling Kaoru just pulled herself away, or rather, it was more as if she had retreated from him emotionally as she slipped into the bathroom and he went to the bedroom. It occurred to him that, maybe, he was not the only one feeling a new direction in the wind. He blinked, that thought was awfully vague. Was he still denying existence of their attraction, even to himself?

The sound of the shower spray echoed down the all to tingle his ears as he rummaged through the drawers. His wife had few clothes and brought most of them in her small wheel-lifted luggage. Only a few under-garments remained and that skimpy, nearly see-through nightwear Sano had bought for Tomoe's 20th birthday as a very distasteful joke. She never wore it and, his imagination flaring, he certainly was not about to throw Kaoru in those scandalous garments. Frowning, the redheaded teacher turned to the wardrobe where he hung the few shirts he owned. What else was there besides the dress shirts he wore to teach? Three t-shirts that maybe could serve her as a nightshirt were dirty from the seven days spent at the sea.

With a sigh, Kenshin picked a simple, safe, white cotton shirt and a random underpant before going to the bathroom door. He knocked once and her voice answered swiftly.

"Yes?" It sounded muffled behind the bathroom and shower doors and the sound of the spray.

"I'll open the door a crack to leave your cloths by the sink, Miss Kaoru."

"Ok…"

Swiftly, eyes firmly closed, Kenshin disposed of the neatly folded cloths and closed the door. Taking a step back, he released a breathy sigh, hand sliding down the knob to brush his side, almost lifeless, and turned to the kitchen. Tea should ease his mind.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

The young man was filling up the grey porcelain cup when the even pour in the bathroom ceased. By the time she walked out the washroom, he was dissolving a cloud of milk into the amber liquid.

"Kenshin?"

She stepped into the living room, a towel around her shoulders, part of the terry-clothe cloaked her head as she carefully wrapped the excess of water from her long, dark hair. The shirt he gave her reached barely above her knees and skimmed over her thighs when she moved her arm. His lavender eyes widened, maybe he should have given her shorts as well.

"Do you have a brush somewhere?" She asked, moving her wet locks over her shoulder to fight of the rest of the obstinate droplets.

"I'll get it."-- and probably a pair of shorts as well -- He mumbled over a dry mouth and took a furtive a look over his shoulder he swallowed -- most defiantly.

Unfortunately, he found none and came back nearly empty-handed; the brush was not shorts for all he knew. His eyes observed the girl -- correction; the young woman -- and quickly looked back at the object he held and swallowed. She reached for it and he stopped her, not liking the turn his thoughts took when imagining Kaoru standing in the middle of the living room, the brush sliding through those ink-like strands, the shirt lifting up her thighs… When had he started to _lust_ for his student? He had to prevent her from giving a life to his sudden fantasy.

"Allow me, please."

Her skin tinted a lovely color and her blue eyes darted away from him and found something so much more interesting on the floor. The thought came on its own. She looked so cute. Kenshin's cup of tea was long since forgotten when, shyly, the blue-eyed girl let him lead her to the couch. She carefully sat on the floor, folding her long legs to her side and pulled at the helm of her shirt.

His fingers ran through the length of her wet midnight locks, feeling the softness of it glide across his hand, finding the knots before he slid the brush through the silky mane. The coldness of the drying hair contrasted with the warmth of her head and Kenshin realised with a slight intake that it was a most pleasant feeling. He remember how soft that river of black felt when dry, but having the wet strands stick to his skin before gently they slipped away was something entirely different.

The more he touched her hair, the more he felt himself falling into a deep trance. Slowly, as time lapsed, the young man slid over the edge of the couch, nudging his companion forward so he could come to rest behind her. It was only to better reach the bottom of her amazingly soft hair, only to work all the naughty knots away. Only for those reasons, he justified himself inwardly. But his head seemed to fall on its own and as the last loop gave away, his hands slumped down the warm curve of her back to land on the cool floor and his forehead found rest between her shoulder plates.

"Kenshin…" she whispered softly.

It seemed the same spell was cast upon her. Her heartbeat thumped slowly but firmly and he could feel it resonate in his skull. It was a lulling and peaceful beat that spoke gentleness and comfort so sweetly -- there was nothing wrong in listening to that addictive tempo, was there? He took a deep breath, the fresh, clean smell of soap and shampoo -- his soap, his shampoo… on her skin… in her hair-- filled his nose along with something unique but just as fresh and clean. Maybe it was not such a wise idea after all. Such an aroma could hush all of his will away. Now, if only he could remember what he was so willing not to do…

He should not be doing this. Not here, not then, but it felt so amazingly good. Simply to lay his head on the young woman's warm back, the steady pulse chanting in his head was charming. His arms itched to presser that soft body to his chest, maybe the heartbeat would feel even stronger. No! Kenshin had to let go of her, stand up and bid her goodnight. It should be easy. The redheaded man simply had to lift his head and the rest should probably follow.

"I can't…"His voice was barely a murmur, almost slipping by unnoticed and his arms slid around her waist and slowly pulled the girl to his chest. "… that I can't."

Kaoru's hand brushed over his. "Kenshin…"

Her mind had been failing ever since the first stroke of his gentle fingers. That resolution she took earlier not to fall into such a daze by fleeing into the bathroom was slipping away from her mind. At that moment when Kaoru had touched his fiery bangs and Kenshin had looked into her eyes, those amazing violet iris sparkling as if a light resided within and yet gloomed by sorrow, the young woman knew that she had to pull away or she would regret something. Now it was a flitting promise, flying away such as so many did before this one. Could the young woman really regret being held like this, so tenderly? Why not… just melt.

Kenshin's control snapped, momentarily, and he pressed his lips softly to the woman's cotton covered skin. He gritted his teeth, clutching his eyes close, he wanted to do it again, but he could not. Would not. The reason, however, was vaguely elusive. All he needed was a little strength, if only god would grant him some.

"It's… getting late." He breathed across her neck.

Kenshin had been able to lift his head and utter those words. Should he thank God for the help or curse him? The redheaded man could not quite decide. His thoughts were hazy, fog-like and slipping away such as a tray of smoke vanishing into air.

Kaoru nodded and, slowly, forced herself up. Kenshin's arms slid from her waist and it felt almost as if the redheaded man did not want her to leave. Her bare feet lead her nearly blinded body to the bedroom, a feeling of lost falling heavily on her shoulder. Still, she forced a smile on her face before the young woman stole one last glance from her handsome teacher. That's right, he was her teacher, and he was married…

"Goodnight." She murmured and disappeared into the room and softly shut the door.

"Good night…" he whispered back, knowing very well she did not hear and thankful for it. His voice had sounded a bit strange, stranded maybe… or saddened, he could not tell witch one exactly.

His gaze traced the lines of wood on the floor, across the living room to the dinning table. It drifted over the bubble-like designs of one of the table's leg, over the edge and on the smooth surface of the dinning furniture. The teacup stood there, cold and forgotten. Kenshin strode to the table, warped his fingers around the smooth material of the cup and lifted it up to his mouth. The liquid was not very warm anymore and the taste not as soothing as he wanted it to be.

In a daze, his eyes roved over the few objects that littered the table. There was an empty vase in the middle on a white lace cover-cloths and his briefcase, stomach swollen by the pile of copies he had to correct before the end of summer break. Next week, all will be back to the usual, almost monotone routine. His eyes caught a small scarp of paper on which numbers had been written in graceful curves. It was the hotel number where Kaoru's aunts would be spending the night.

Kenshin picked up the white square of paper and eyed the numbers. Maybe he should call them, at least to let them know their niece was in his house. Or maybe he should ask them to come and pick her up? He was not sure anymore what it was he wanted.

Unconsciously, his hand reached for the receiver and picked it up. The dull tone rang in his ear and his fingers dialled the number, slowly pressing the keys one after the other. He waited and wondered what time it was, if he was not disturbing them for something completely trivial. That's when he felt her.

Kaoru had soundlessly exited the bedroom and walked the few meters separating them to stand behind her teacher. Lightly, her arms circled his torso and her warm cheek rested on his nape. He felt his muscles freeze and his fingers numbed.

"Would you…" Kaoru's hold tightened and he sighed. The receiver slid down a notch in his loosening grasp. "Forgive me…" she murmured against his skin. "I guess friendship is just not it anymore." The young woman sighed. "But…" Her breath was warm on his sensitive flesh. The young man had the repress a shiver of delight. "You're married…" It was more said in her sake then his, a warning to herself.

"Kaoru…" he whispered. "You're my student."

They both knew those were empty reasons now. It was time for the crumbling wall to fall.

"Don't think I ever cared…"

He turned his head and she met his gaze, a shadow of a smile upon her lips, her blue eyes sparkling.

"Kenshin… do you love her?" She asked, softly. The looming thought that his heart still belonged to the refined woman was her only remaining fear.

He let go of the string that held back his feelings. The invisible force Kenshin had earlier called upon was about to close their eyes. Kenshin returned the receiver to the phone, almost blindly, just as someone picked it up on the other side. Careful fingers reached for the lovely face of Kaoru and pushed a wet stray strand from her face, gently. She saw his true smile for what she thought was the first time.

"No…" he answered against her lips.

It was just as he remembered. However, this time the young woman was not crying. His thumb caressed a dry, smooth cheek, the muscle tugged lightly from the smile he could feel on her lips. This time, there would be no sorrow, no comfort to give, no twig to snap at the wrong time, just the still silence of the house, the blue-eyed woman and him. Even God would live them be, if only just this once. Her arms warped around his neck, her fingers slid gently across his nape and played with the small hair there.

"Kaoru…" he murmured.

His left hand slid across her back to press at the curve wanting, needing to pull her body closer to his. The girl gasped for air and he swallowed her bottom lip, nibbling tenderly. He had longed to do so since he saw her bit her lip for first time, only a few months ago. Careful fingers traced the line of her face, slid down her throat and across her shoulder. Her hair was still damp and drenched the back of her shirt which stuck to her like a second skin.

Kaoru was not a passive girl and Kenshin had always admired that quality of her. Her mouth not only succumbed to his touch, but responded as well. Her tongued darted out, her bottom lips still caught in his delightful bite, and lightly, tentatively, tickled his mouth. Her digits danced over his arm, curious and swift, gentle and carefree, they explored what they could. It sent tingling shocks up and down his spine.

"Kaoru…" Kenshin had left her mouth to trace featherlike kisses across her jaw, up to her ear where he whispered her name tenderly. "I can't…"

She opened her eyes. His caress forced her to tilt her head to the right, his words, though, worried her. "Can't…?"

"I mean," he explained, suckling and gently biting her earlobe. "Tell me…" A warm, questing hand to her side accompanied his words. "Tell me to stop Kaoru."

Kenshin's voice was almost pleading her, but his action told of a different yearning.

"S…stop…?" she stuttered.

"Before I can't." He murmured, fingers brushing the underside of her breast. She shivered. "Tell me to stop."

Her hand reached for his head and pressed his face against her neck. "Don't…"

Kenshin opened his eyes and rush back up the path to her mouth. He met her gaze, it was confident, it was beautiful. He cradled her head in his hands, his mouth only a breath away from hers. He smiled; no more warnings and no more restrains. He dove into her lips, his mouth searching, his kiss searing.

Her chest pressed into his and as she took a deep breath, his tongue found its way inside. His fingers glided down her arm and around her breast, tracing circles on the white cotton covering her warm skin. His other hand slid down her neck to find the shirt's collar, searching blindly for buttons. In the mean time, his mouth not once leaving hers, he slowly guided Kaoru backward. Her steps were clumsy, weary of hitting a random object, but Kenshin knew the way.

The young man undid a few buttons to reveal the soft swell of her chest but did not dive any further for the moment. His teeth nipped down her slender neck. His hand grazed over a very sensitive part of her breasts and she shivered. His name escaped her lips so very softly and he too, shivered.

They crossed the bedroom door, left wide open when the girl left the room earlier. With a blind push of the redhead's heel, it was close. Kaoru's delicate touch had rove across his chest and down his torso her fingers trying to work the helm of his shirt out of his pants. They tickled his flesh shyly. It felt blissfully good, the feel of her touch, fingers spreading wide over his skin, her cheek rubbing against his hair, her breath hot next to his ear.

The backside of her knees connected with the bedside and, with a cute sound of surprise, the blue-eyed girl dropped seated on the bed. Following her downward motion, Kenshin knelt in front of her, his face buried in the crock of her neck. Because of the fabric that covered his chest, she strained to reach his stomach and instead settled to comb her fingers through his soft, fiery hair, sending shivers all over his body.

His exploration grew bolder, desire fuelled by the girl's soft sighs. He touched her wherever he could reach with careful pressure and soft pinches, vivifying her nerves. His mouth drew moist paths of open mouth kisses athwart from the side of her head down and further down her collarbones, suckling here and there, toward the delicate roundness above her heart.

She could feel the heat of his mouth through the cotton as he warped around a sensitive pike. Unable to repress it, Kaoru let go of a breathy moan and she gripped his head and arched her back to give him better access. She pressed the redhead tightly to herself with a passionate grip. His fingers kneaded over her ribcage, spread in large arcs, and caressed the underside of her breasts before a thumb grazed the other clothed nipple, steering it to life.

"K…Kenshin…" she whispered, needing.

"Shhh…" His breath tickled her, hot on the now damp spot on her chest.

He switched his caring attention and slid a free hand down her side to grip her thigh ever so gently. His fingers slipped under her shirt, stroking the hidden skin of her leg and then up to go back down in smooth circles. Kaoru trembled and exhaled sharply, one of her hand diving under his shirt eager to feel his skin.

They were isolated from the rest of the world, cocooned in their private universe of feel, touch and love. Kenshin's caress left her breast and thigh to work on the remaining buttons. He lifted his face to kiss her petal fresh lips. She was responsive, pliant under his touch, vivid and full of life. Her fingers followed his lead. If she was to be bare chest in front of him, so would he.

Their shirts were discarded carelessly, and Kenshin's hungry mouth returned to her chest. His kisses were passionate, nipping then sucking her fevered flesh. Kaoru could not touch enough of him. Her hands gripped his shoulders, head and back almost desperately. Never before had she felt so… desired. He made her feel special, needed, precious. His touch always tender, even if his eagerness never ceased to increase.

Soon, the young woman found herself lying on the mattress, his mouth ravaging her body, stealing her thoughts away, filling her with sensations of him, images of him. Her vision saw only those warm, amethyst depths, even when she could no longer keep her eyes open.

His lips quested upon her body and followed his exploring hands. They mapped her skin, wanting, needing to discover ever part, every secrets she hid. Kaoru's skin was soft, her flesh firm and rip with a few little imperfections here and there. Small scratches, little bruises and tiny cuts that proved him how real she was. Her hands were just as rough as his own, but delicate and her touch featherlike. Nothing was as addictive, as sweet and beautiful as her it seemed.

Kenshin took his time to ignite a fire within her that threatened to consume her alive, and yet promised so much.

"Kenshin…" she panted, "I..."

His hand caressed her cheek and he smiled at her, nested his head on her stomach, his red hair tickling her sides.

"Please, allow me.…" he asked, hooking a finger to her underwear but waited for her approval.

Kaoru blushed but nodded. Slowly, the garment slid down her long legs. She felt exposed, completely at his mercy, and yet willing and fervent.

"Don't be embarrassed…" he told her, dropping a kiss on her knee. "You're beautiful, that you are."

She smiled shyly, sat up and reached for his face. "I'm not embarrassed…" she assured with a childlike grin, her blush, however, was burning. "Not that much anyway…" and kissed him

The redheaded laughed, the sound much like his personality, soft, gentle and caring. Kenshin kissed her back and again, with growing fervour until both lied breathless. He pushed her back to the downy comforter, his fingers twining with hers. Carefully the redheaded man pulled the girl's arms above her head then slid his hands down her sides. They made a quick stop at her breasts before continuing. His fingers tickled her stomach, played with her navel, rounded around her hips and gripped her thighs.

He planted butterfly kisses all over Kaoru's face and chest, showering her with tenderness and love. Then his fingers touched her where only she did before that. Her breath caught and her eyes shoot open, a loud gasp resembling his name escaped her tight throat. Kenshin nuzzled her neck, coaxing her gently to give herself up and relax. His index slid up and down the girl's nether region, searching blindly for that one spot. He hit it once and Kaoru shivered, her hips bucking upward. He touched it twice again before starting to motion his finger in slow circles.

"Kenshin!" She pleaded.

"Don't worry." he hushed her, not for the first time, his voice comforting and appeasing, his action exciting and maddening. "Just feel Kaoru."

The young, black-haired woman's breathe quickened and Kenshin could feel her heart pound in rhythm to her gasps. He observed as her face flushed, pleasure twisting her features so beautiful, her lips parted, her chest heaving erratically. He could not resist tasting that mouth once more and slipped his tongue inside, swallowing her gentle cries of desire. His lips travelled to play with an erected nipple and she started to trash, gasping for breath, climax rising. Oh, but he did not stop when she cried in ecstasy, rather, he continued to torture the knot of nerves, devouring her flesh as he did.

"Ah… K… Kenshin…"

"Once more," he encouraged her, his tongue dipping into that cute belly button of hers and he looked up into her eyes. "I want to hear you once more…"

Kaoru swallowed, a trembling hand reaching for his head as it started to dart further down her muscular stomach. She wanted to stop him and implore him to continue at the same time. The sensations that torn through her was maddening. Her body underwent a violent quiver when he did the unconceivable. His finger still igniting pleasure at her core, his tongue joined in the dance. He sucked, nipped and licked, driving her insane, panting and sweating. She fought against him, fought with him, struggling to breathe, struggled to stay sane, struggled for release.

Kaoru planted her heels firmly on the mattress, trying to find something to ground herself, a bound to reality that seemed to slip from her grasp with each stroke of his joined fingers and tongue. White flashed before her eyes and she let go of a strangled cry, her back arching off the bed gracefully. Her toes wriggled and a warm tangling sensation warped around flesh. Kenshin smiled against her intimacy, one of her hand was firmly tingled in his hair and the other clutched a fistful of the bed cover. Her strong grip softened slowly just as her back returned to the mattress. He kissed the inside of her thigh, living a love-bite behind.

"Kaoru…" he whispered, covering her body with his own. He caressed her cheek tenderly, applying soft kisses to her neck and jaw to gain her attention back. "Kaoru…"

Breathing heavily, she opened her eyes and slowly, a smile spread over kiss-swollen lips. "I… I…"

But she could not find words. Instead, she practically jumped on him and covered his mouth with her own fevered one. Her vitality and strength amazed him. Gently, with the help of her hands, she pushed him into a sitting position. Her tongue explored the recess of his mouth clumsy at first, but soon she learned how to kiss him and hesitation flickered, like a dying light bulb before it died, and disappeared.

Her lips trailed over his jawbone, her teeth marking her passage as they descended to his throat, suckling softly. Kenshin swallowed, surprised by her boldness, moved by her tender care. With a light touch, her hands mimicked his earlier actions, fingers gently exploring, tickling his skin and marvelling at the feel of it.

"Kaoru… what are you doing?" His voice had a muted quality to it and caused the young woman to smile against his chest where her mouth had travelled.

"Returning the favour…" she breathed before darting her tongue tentatively on his strong chest.

He shivered and his hands dove into her drying hair. Lightly, Kaoru's dainty fingertips traced a line to his abdominal muscles, feeling them ripple and quake under her touch. Her moist mouth closed on one of his nipples and he exhaled sharply. The sound intoxicated her. The blue-eyed teenager depicted careful circles with her hands and mouth, slowly reached down to his trousers and discreetly unfastened the button. She hesitated shortly before giving into the temptation to plunge her hands inside. The skin there was softer than anywhere else.

Her hands were treacherous little things. When Kenshin thought they only would explore lightly they mischievously dove right for his sex.

"K… Kaoru…" he murmured hotly, his head fell to rest on her shoulder.

For the first time, Kaoru touched a man. The realisation of it caused her to stop, open her eyes and blink. Idly, she looked down to where her hands had disappeared to and squeezed lightly. A gruff, muffled sound rumbled through Kenshin's chest and the girl smiled. She liked that reaction.

As her mouth returned to create wonders on his torso, her hands slid up and down his length, as if measuring it. It felt different. The skin was exceedingly soft and just a tad bit slippery at the tip. It was warm and she could almost feel it pulsing in her palms and it was rather hard and, she realised, still hardening. Her fingers went further down to cup him and then applied gentle pressure. A sound that resembled a groan touched her ear and she smiled, gaining confidence.

Soon, she found a rhythm that got Kenshin panting and groaning against her. He held her with a desperate grip, his breath ardent on her back.

"Kaoru…" he murmured, almost soundlessly, unable to form any other coherent word.

Trembling, he warped his hands around her wrists and gently pulled them away. She was reluctant to let go and he had to coax her back to the bed to free himself from her passionate grasp. Swiftly, he got rid of the rest of his clothes and laid above the young woman, carefully cradling her in his arms. He meld his lips upon hers, taking all his time to rediscover her mouth. He wanted her, yes, but he wanted to savour every part of her.

Distantly, Kaoru heard a drawer being pull open and the shifting of unknown items then the drawer slid close. Kenshin's lips skidded from hers to scatter millions of kiss upon her face, neck and shoulders before he looked her in the eyes. His violet orbs were intense and unguarded, shamelessly displaying his desire for her and the tenderness behind the fire that raged within.

"You can still tell me to stop." He whispered.

"I don't want you to." She answered, her eyes mirroring his feelings.

He offered her a warm smile and sat back slightly, a square of plastic trapped in his fingers. Kaoru blushed furiously recognizing the item. He torn off the warping and her fingers reached up to take the preservative away from him. At his questioning look, the young woman flushed a deeper shade of red, her sapphire gaze hiding from his look but her lips had a gracious loop.

"Let me do it…"

His gaze softened and he gave her a kiss, guiding her in the process. He gently caressed her hair, the dampness of it almost completely gone, and kissed her brow. He followed a sinuous path across her face, meeting her lips once in a while before they skidded down to the tender flesh of her neck, teeth grazing now and then. His hands touched her breasts, starting her fire anew before her carefully slid his protected sex into her moist entrance.

She gasped and her muscles protested by tightening around him and he stilled. His mouth devoured her chest, finding every little spot that set her nerves afire and pushed further within her. Kaoru grimaced slightly, the sensation was not very comfortable, although it was not as painful as she first expected.

"Please Kaoru," he breathed over a glistening nipple. "Relax…"

She took a deep breath, "I'm ready." She uttered.

Kenshin's hand slipped between them, his finger searched for the bundle of nerve there and started to rub it as soon as his touch feathered upon it. Gasping, Kaoru spread her things wider and the redheaded man felt her insides melt against him, allowing him to slide further inside. With a little push, he went all the way through, his fingers never ceasing to caress her most sensitive point, his mouth still devouring her soft mounds.

He gave her time to adjust, readapting his position and sliding an arm under her back and took a gentle hold of her hand. His mouth found hers yet again and, no longer able to stand still, started a gentle, careful motion. Kaoru writhed slightly at first but soon, her hips were joining his in their age-old dance.

Kenshin was just as she had always imagined him to be. Considerate, gentle and tender with a definite flare of passion into each of his movements and caresses. She felt overwhelmed and all Kaoru could do was to warp both arms and legs around him and allow her instincts take over and guide the joined couple toward ecstasy. They panted heavily, sweating profusely. His grip tightened on her hand, pulled it above her head and Kenshin rested his brows against hers, peering deep into her blue eyes. He met her love with each trust that sent a gasp through her parted lips.

Her breasts bounced up and down, rubbed against his chest, millions of dazzling sensations shared through their act of love. It was nearly too much, his heart pounded loud in his ears along with the lovely sound of Kaoru's soft mews and moans. He was short on breath. A hand to her backside helped her following each of his thrusts. Her cries took in intensity, echoed on the walls and created a feral music that followed them through their lovemaking, his own hushed groans joining in the chant.

At one moment, the young woman became unbelievably tight around him, her inner muscles creating some sort of suction and Kenshin's restrains shattered in his hands. Her hips pushed upward and Kaoru found her release with a mute cry in her throat, eyes wide and unfocused. With barely a few more thrusts, the redheaded man joined her, burring his face in the crook of her neck, a hoarse grunt rumbling through his chest.

They stood still for an eternal moment, their loud breathing the only source of noise in the dark bedroom. Kenshin felt, for the first time in many years, completely relaxed, at ease… happy. So happy that a large grin spread over his face and he inhaled deeply. The smell of soap, shampoo, sweat and love was everywhere. It was blissful… sinfully blissful.

"Kaoru…" he said, voice smiling and tender.

Finger combing his silken strands of vermillion, the girl sighed, her lids feeling rather heavy all of a sudden. Drowsiness seeped through her, her breath falling into a deep, restful rhythm. Kenshin lift his head, and saw her drift away in a matter of seconds. He chuckled before he pulled away, almost regretful, to dispose of the condom. He probably should wake her up and instruct her to go to the bathroom, but the adorable look he found on her sleeping face pleaded him to let her sleep. Instead, he brought a cleaning-terrycloth.

His tasks done, Kenshin gently gathered the girl in his arms and slipped the both of them under the covers. She murmured half words in her sleep as he moved her but never woke. The redheaded teacher yawned and shifted slightly, gently cradling the girl in his arms. He rested his head on her shoulder and fell into a deep, blissful slumber.

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**_Not many knows how much I hesitated to make this chapter a complete lemon instead of a simple, sweet lime. In the beginning I intended to keep it to an erotic exploration. I'm still wondering if I should have kept it to that, but it is actually way too late to change it. I tried to keep it as realistic as possible though and I'm aware that not every girls has an orgasm on their first time. Someday I will probably write a more realistic first-time-lemon, but for now, I don't want to break that fantasist illusion. Heh… I'm either a real softy of a very naughty girl. I must also explain a bit Kenshin's memory scenes. They resume what happened, but they don't tell much anything either. I'm not sure if Kenshin will explain everything in this story or in the sequel. I suppose it's something I'll know as I will continue to write my plan. I'm curious to know your suspicions though._**

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**_Eden_****_'s Epitaph_**

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_Edited by Guardian Forever_


	15. And Then

**Warnings: Unusual sweetness, fluff and mild swearing.**

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**_Honeysuckles and Moonlight Shreds_**

_By Eden's Epitaph_

Chapter 14: _And then…_

The morning was still young when furious barging steered Kenshin from his slumber. Three straight knocks, swift and loud although distant enough to confuse into dream and reality disturbed his comfort. The first thing he saw when sleep finally vanished from his eyes was shiny strands of black ink spilled all over his bed-wide pillow. He smiled; she could make him smile so easily without even trying. Such an enigmatic, beautiful and lively young woman he had found.

"Kaoru…" he whispered, planting a soft kiss on her bare shoulder.

"The door…" she mumbled, half awake.

Sure enough, the abusing of the door started anew with more urgency --if possible-- then before. Groggily, the redheaded man slipped out of bed and grabbed his boxers. He stumbled clumsily on his way to the lobby, trying to get into his underwear as he walked. He heard Kaoru giggle, felt her brilliant eyes on his back and he gave her a playful warning look. She laughed some more, shielding her naked body under the blankets and became a lump of bed linen and comforter.

"Kenshin!" cried a voice from the other side of the wooden door, a voice the teacher knew very well.

Blinking, the man unlocked the door and twisted the handle. "Sano?"

"'Bout time! I've been scrapping my knuckles on that thing for 'bout 5 minutes." Sanosuke walked directly into the lobby, ignoring Kenshin's surprised look.

"Ah…"

"I've been trying to call you all morning." explained the tall man, making himself at home and going straight for the refrigerator.

"That is…" mumbled the redhead.

His half-hearted protests were blatantly ignored.

"Your line was always occupied, what happened?" He asked, munching on a piece of bunny shaped onogiri -- Kenshin really had too much time to kill.

"Sano, it's not…" Tried the poor man, slightly discomfited and confused. What was Sagara Sanosuke doing in his house-- taking a swift look at the dinning room clock-- so early in the morning?

That's when the spiky-headed man finally looked at his friend. "What's wrong?" He asked walking to him. "What are you doing in your underwear?"

Kenshin blushed and went for the easy way out of possible trouble.

"Oro ?" -- Feigned confusion.

A sound from the bedroom caught Sano's attention. Giving his friend a curiously suspicious look, he moved slightly so he could get a view of the bedroom door left ajar. He saw a black-haired girl, her back to him, in the process of sliding into a shirt… a man's shirt. Flabbergasted, his stared twisted back to the redhead. Sano pointed a shaking finger to the room and tried to get the words out of his numbed mouth.

"Is… Is… Is that a… a…" His eyes traveled from Kenshin's head to his toes, noting his dishevelled hair, barely clad body, and almost fell over --had it been an anime, Sano would certainly have a dangling sweat drop somewhere around his head.

There was a good reason for Sanosuke to be surprised. Three simple -- well known-- facts pointed to the blaring truth. The first point was a common knowledge among friends and co-workers alike; Kenshin never slept past 7 am -- actually, usually was up by sunrise -- he was an early-bird even when they were still kids. Second, Kenshin never slept without a shirt, even through suffocating heat -- although Sano never really knew why. Finally, the redheaded teacher took great care of that flaming hair of his and rarely let them loose, especially at night. The hair was so fine and they knotted so easily, it was a tedious task to free them all.

The truth was; Kenshin spent an eventful night with the mysterious young lady in the bedroom, and that, above all, was what robbed Sano of his tongue. He could imagine his best friend do numerous things and had seen the short redheaded man do many surprising deeds, but committing adultery was not one of them. And the teacher just stood there, half naked, red all over his face but his lavender eyes devoid of shame. He appeared to be simply embarrassed, nothing more.

"You're… Sanosuke, right?" Kaoru's curious voice got both men out of their stupor.

They turned their attention in her direction, Sano blinking, Kenshin smiling shyly. The girl was standing by the bedroom door, sporting only a white cotton shirt -- barely decent in Sanosuke's point of view. She was blushing and very conscious of the awkwardness of the situation. However, just as Kenshin, the girl did not seem to be ashamed nor did she give the impression of trying to hid or otherwise explain anything.

"R…right." Stuttered the tall young man and recognition lit his brown eyes. "Ah! You're that crazy girl from the other day…"

Irritation appeared into her blue gaze. "Who are you calling crazy!" She almost spat indignantly. "If I recall, you were stealing food from your nephew. A good kick was in order." Saying so, she planted her hands on her hips, defying.

"Stealin'? Now I think you've jumped to conclusions a little bit too early, Missy." retorted an irritated Sanosuke.

"_Maa__, maa_… Sano… Kaoru…" tried to interpose Kenshin. The two stared at him as if he were no more than a stain on the floor. The young teacher felt suddenly very, very small.

Sanosuke was first to break the tensed silence and he was not especially merry when he spoke.

"What were you THINKIN'!" His tone was full of reproach. Was he the only one who noticed how immoral this situation was?

The redhead did not like that tone and his usually amiable expression faltered slightly.

"That girl could be your sister!" continued the tall man, ignoring the sings of annoyance in his best friend's face. "We've got enough problems as it is without you screwin' around with a schoolgirl!"

"…Sc…screwing…" Kaoru stuttered, taken aback. The word made her feel nauseous.

"Sanosuke!" exclaimed a now furious Kenshin, his eyes blazing. "I think you are the one jumping to conclusion."

The spiky headed man swallowed loudly, his friend rarely ever raised his voice. "Sorry…" he muttered, crossing his arms over his chest and darting his eyes away from Kenshin's irritated gaze.

"I suggest you think before speaking, that I do." He said, forcing calm to return to him. His voice still held a sharp edge though. "Now… What are you doing here?"

Sano passed a hand through his black spikes and readjust his red bandana, nervously, "I've been tryin' to call you for two hours man. Your line's been occupied all the damn time."

The sound of a sliding object caused the two men to look at Kaoru. She had a sheepish expression, her hand on the receiver. "You... um… did not hang it up properly yesterday…" There was also a bright blush on her cheeks.

Kenshin shrugged and gave the girl a soft look then returned his attention to Sanosuke. "What was so urgent for you to come barging in here?" He inquired.

"They called. The trial's in a week."

Lavender eyes grew wide and a startled sound escaped the teacher's lips. "So soon?"

Sano nodded. "When is…" he stole a glance toward the half naked young woman, hesitating. "When is Tomoe supposed to return?"

Kenshin frowned. "In about two months…"

The tall man pulled a chair and literally fell on it. "We're in trouble…"

"Excuse me…" intruded the black haired girl. "I know it's not much of my businesses…"

"Damn right." cut Sano, gruff and irritated.

The girl glared at him. "I simply want to help." Then she turned her attention toward her lover. "An old friend of my family is an eminent lawyer in Tokyo."

"Kaoru, we can't afford to pay for a good lawyer."

"Let me finish." She said, sternly. "He has a pupil who is still studying. He's brilliant, really, and is always looking for a good challenge… for very cheap…"

This got Sanosuke's attention. "How cheap."

Kaoru grinned. "So cheap, you'd think he's making fun of you."

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It was raining above Tokyo and had been so for the last three days. Dark, thick clouds covered the city from every cardinal point, heavy drops pouring endlessly, rhythmically, soaking everything up. Citizens were starting to wonder if the streets would transform into torrents if the downpour continued and there were still no sings of fatigue from the looming darkness looming in the sky.

Slouched on a luxurious -- and very expensive -- leather couch of an equally luxurious penthouse apartment -- actually it was a condo--, head upside down, remote in hand, a braided, green-eyed girl switched through channels, bored and uninterested. In her boredom, she cursed fate, God and Mother Nature every five minutes in unintelligible mutters.

"Misao, you won't spend your day sprawled on the couch, _again_, are you?" asked an old man, tugging at the long, white beard that dingle from the tip of his chin.

The bow he always knotted around it looked very silly, but no one had the courage to tell him. Not even his clients it seemed. The girl, Misao, had once tried many times but failed. The old man should know that it strips him of credibility, and with it, authority.

"What if I do, Jiya?" She answered lazily. "It's not like I could do anything else anyway…"

"Don't you have homework to pass your time?"

The girl growled. "It's not like I don't have…" she marked a pause and counted on her fingers. "… Six whole days left to do'em."

"That's about what you said yesterday," said a tall, stoic looking man. "And the day before that…"

The teenage girl moaned and rolled off the couch. "I got the point…"

"Come on Misao, as you'd say '_It's not like you'd be missing stuff._' With weather like this, even rats wouldn't leave their holes." The old man mocked the girl openly and she blew him a raspberry. He laughed.

The phone rang and Misao's face turned bright. A smile spread wide over her lips, illuminating her childish features. She dashed from the couch and stole the receiver from Jiya's hand. The old man frowned but the girl ignored him, all too happy for the distraction from the dreaded summer assignments the teachers had pilled on her desk -- and, of course, the desks of the other rest of her class as well--.

"Hello, hello!" She greeted enthusiastic as ever. "KAORU!" Needless to say, she was surprised. "How are… Aoshi?" Large green eyes turned in the direction of the stoic man and Misao blinked. The short girl had a sceptical look when she offered him the phone. "It's Kaoru for you."

"Aoshi." He said then listened for a moment, his expression stagnant as usual. Nothing could faze '_Mr. Ice-cube_'--Kaoru's favourite nickname. "Service… What kind?"

Curious, Misao tried to eavesdrop, standing on toes, to no avail -- the man was too tall. Jiya stepped closer as well, sharing the girl's interest. Aoshi frowned at them, but continued his conversation as if the two indiscreet eavesdroppers were mere dust particles in the corner of his vision.

"It depends… Yes." There was a pause and Aoshi took a pen and a torn a page from the note pad by the telephone. "Good morning Mr… Himura."

Misao was confused. The name '_Himura_', she had heard of it a couple of times before. He was Kaoru's Writing and Literature teacher. Now, why was her best friend with a teacher during summer break? Was she still at that beach trip? For a long period, Aoshi simply noted and made small sounds of understanding before he bid his interlocutor goodbye and hung up.

"What was this all about?" asked the braided girl. Something told her that exciting stuff was about to come.

Ice-blue eyes turned her way and the man folded the paper he had scribbled on and stuffed it into his chest pocket. His expression was, as per usual, unreadable.

"How about a little trip, Misao?" he asked.

"Trip!" The teenage girl had a moment of confusion, then smiled and turned toward the old man. "Can I?"

"Sure, if it gets you off my couch." agreed Jiya.

Misao beamed.

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"Have I ever told you how much I hate buses?" asked a dishevelled Sae as she pushed the apartment door open.

"Nearly 47 times since this morning…" sighed Tae, stuffing her set of keys back into her purse as she stepped inside. "Kaoru! We're home."

"Remind me why we don't have a car?" Sae was exhausted, frustrated and downright exasperated.

The trip to Kobe had not been very fructuous. The brochure promised much but all they got was complaints and moans from fellow Nippon restaurateurs in similar situations. No pointers as how to kill the scandalous competition established in front of their beloved little Shirobeko. In Sae's point of view, it had been a large waste of their precious time. Her twin shared a similar opinion.

"Because we can't afford it. Buses are cheaper and I remember you telling me they were '_ecological_'…. Where's Kaoru?"

"Probably in her room."

Tae reached for the telephone, picked it up, pushed one of the many memory keys, and returned her attention toward her sister. "Why in god's name did the conference took place in Kobe… Why not here or Tokyo… they would've reached more people that way…" She was not a fan of voyages and leaving the restaurant for so long left her uneasy but for their cause, she would even make a trip to a foreign country if it would help.

Her twin shrugged and knocked on Kaoru's bedroom door. "Kaoru?" She turned the doorknob and walked in. "How was your… T… Tae…"

"... Takaheshi, how is everything?" Tae seemed relieved to hear the young cook's voice. Not that she did not have faith in the young man but he still needed much more training and leaving the restaurant in his hands left her feeling as if abandoning her costumers in a way. Then she heard her sister's faint call. "Excuse me a moment… What's the matter?"

"Kaoru's not home…"

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The left over of a traditional breakfast were still scattered across the dinning table but the murmurs of the drying machine had died a few minutes ago. Kaoru was in the bedroom, folding her clothes with the help of Kenshin. The young woman still wore the shirt her teacher had lend her the night before. It felt so comfortable that secretly, she sought excuses to stay clad in the cotton shirt.

They ate with Sanosuke, who, to Kaoru's utter surprise, seemed to possess a nearly bottomless stomach. The young spiky headed man kept his propos clear from the awkwardness of the situation, and the reason why she had to call Aoshi. Although he spend many efforts to keep some sort of mask over what the girl believed to be worry, his discomfort shown clearly. Kenshin, on the other hand, talked pleasantly with both his friend and his lover, but she knew, meeting his gaze once in a while, that something bothered him.

"Kenshin?" She inquired, folding a t-shirt. "Do you think Sanosuke dislikes me?"

The redheaded man looked at her for a moment, pausing in his task, then shook his head. "I don't think so." He said, his gaze returning to the colourful skirt he was folding. "I think he was more worrying about me then anything else." He assured her.

There was a moment of silence, and then Kaoru spoke once more. "Do you care for approval from others?"

The young teacher blinked. He would be lying if he claimed not to be concern by other people's opinion on many points but when it came to his heart, he would be a fool to let strangers and friends alike interfere. It did not matter when he married Tomoe -- though sometimes he believed he should have paid more heed to their warnings. Still, he was not about to let them meddle in his private life. He trusted his own judgement.

"What Sano believes to be good for me is of little importance."

"It's not exactly what I meant." She corrected, but gave the redhead a warm smile. "Actually, I'm wondering '_what next?'_." This should be clear enough, she thought.

"It depends." He said, somehow elusive.

"Depends?" Kaoru stared at her teacher with a mix of doubt and surprise. "Depends on what?" She could feel her temper rising, this was not exactly the kind of answer she was expecting.

The young man chuckled lightly and picked a lovely embroidered tank top to fold. "On you and me."

Kaoru was slightly confused. She opened her mouth but Kenshin stole her words away with yet another enigmatic question.

"Do you believe that with most gains, a sacrifice has to be made?" He asked.

The girl had a moment of reflection, pondering his question. Where was he heading? "Is that one of those double edge thing? 'Cause, you know, it's getting old." She teased, feeling more comfortable with a bit of humour then plain seriousness. She was still a teenager.

Kenshin grinned then shrugged. "What do you expect?" He asked softly, looking at her half-amused, half-serious.

Kaoru rolled up the last or her socks and piled it with its brothers before answering. "You give me comfort, Kenshin." She told him with a charming smile. "And being near you makes me happy too. I said I didn't care much about you being my teacher, or married. What about you?"

His expression became very soft and he leaned forward. "Nothing doesn't really matter at this point." His lips touched hers gently, a silken brush that warmed Kaoru's heart. He smoothed the skin of her cheek with his thumb and smiled. "And the rest is of no weight compared to this." His fingertip touched her chin such as he would a delicate petal. Such a gentle man he was. "As for Sano," he added. "He was louder when I announced my intention of getting married."

Kenshin remembered it too painfully well, as if it happened the week before. Sanosuke had, not for the first time, punched him rather violently and without much restrain, declaring his best friend a hopeless idealistic idiot and many more vulgar variants. He even refused to be best man, quite adamantly for the matter. The words '_biggest stupidity of the century_' and a harsh '_moron without any brain_' accompanied his gruff rejection. Come to think of it, Hiko's reaction had been quite similar. It was rare that those two agreed on anything, Kenshin should have noticed it back then.

"Speaking of Sano…" inquired Kaoru, hesitantly, as she picked both the skirt and the tank top Kenshin had folded and stood.

"The trial?" He asked, and she nod before unbuttoning her shirt.

Kaoru had turned her back to him, still shy but not exactly willing to ask him to exit the bedroom while she changed.

"Him and I have a…" he searched for the right word "… an eventful past." Explained Kenshin. "We managed to burry most of it so he could take charge of Yahiko when his sister died but…"

"People can be persistent?"

The redhead chuckled lightly. "Sanosuke is renowned for hasty reaction and little thinking before acting, that he is."

"I couldn't tell…" Her tone was roguishly sarcastic. It made him smile. Such playfulness she had.

Getting up from the bed, he circled her waist from behind and leaned his head on her shoulder to plant a soft kiss at the crook of her neck. Kaoru had just shrugged the shirt off her shoulders and had been about to pull the tank top over her head. His breath tickled her and she sighed pleasurably, unconsciously tilting her head, exposing her shoulder to his gentle caress.

"Unlike me, Sano did not cut all of his ties from the time we worked for Akira." He explained. "He got a job as a bouncer in a not so recommendable tavern downtown. As should be expected, they got trouble and, of course, a police investigation took place." He nuzzled his face on her shoulder. Kaoru's skin was silken smooth.

The raven-haired girl glanced at their reflection on the mirror and smiled. The image reflected on the polished metal was a charming one. She loved it.

Leaning into him, nearly forgetting that she was getting dressed, Kaoru sighed. "What time is it?"

"Um…" Kenshin's hands spread across her stomach and his hold tightened slightly. "I don't know…"

"I should be going home," she murmured. "My aunts will be worried."

"You think so?" He asked.

His lips marked a trail up her neck to her earlobe.

Kaoru emitted a sound that was half way between a soft moan and a laugh. "I was left under that impression many times before."

"So… how long do you think we have before they call the police?" He asked, feeling playful. His mouth was hot on her naked flesh.

"I'd say… about 15 minutes…"

He nipped the sensitive skin hidden behind her ear and sighed. "Too short…"

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Kenshin's rusty old car pulled into the parking lot of Kaoru's apartment building. He gave the girl a smiling glance and squeezed her hand.

"What are you going to tell them?" He enquired.

Her thumb smoothed the skin of the back of his hand and she took a furtive glance toward the kitchen's window. There was no sign of her aunts, but looks could be deceiving, unfortunately.

"I don't know." She confessed. "Any suggestions?"

Kenshin was thoughtful for a moment then he grinned. "You got kidnap by extra terrestrial beings?"

The blue-eyed girl giggled. "I don't think they believe in flying saucers, Kenshin." She chided, light-hearted.

He grimaced. "Tough luck."

Kaoru turned serious for a moment. "I don't want to lie to them but…"

Understanding, he pulled her hand up and brushed his lips over her knuckles. "Do you want me to go with you?"

The girl shook her head. "No… I think it'll just complicate things."

The redhead nodded. "Call me if there's any problem." The look he gave her was one of affection and concern.

Kaoru's expression turned loving, her eyes sparkling beautifully when she looked at him. "Don't worry." Her tone was mostly assured. "They are crazy, but not dangerous." She laughed trying to ignore her nervousness.

Smiling, he reached for her chin and drew her face closer to his. "I think I noticed, that I did," and he dropped a chaste kiss on her still slightly swollen lips, his thumb rubbing the tip of her jawbone.

Blindly, she reached for the knob and pushed the door open, her right foot slid to the ground but Kaoru was reluctant to leave him so soon. "I'll call you as soon as I get news from Aoshi."

He nodded and gave her one last kiss before she pulled away. Her bag swung over her right shoulder, she stepped out and closed the door. Their eyes met and both smiled before the car slowly moved back, returned to the street and disappeared as he turned the next street corner.

Kaoru took a deep breath and readjusted the weight of her military luggage. She needed strength, courage and tenacity. The moments to come were bound to be embarrassing, frustrating or infuriating.

"Get some nerves, Kaoru."

When the teenager stepped into the apartment, everything seemed normal. With great hope, she thought that maybe she returned before Tae and Sae. Then a nearly hysterical voice caught her ears and all of her hopes vanished. She walked into the living room and spotted Tae standing in front of the kitchen's island table, speaking rather frenetically over the phone.

"… Blue-eyed with long black hair." said the woman. Apparently, her interlocutor was either a curious one or, as Kaoru feared, a police officer. "Yesterday afternoon, but we weren't home so…"

Kaoru swallowed, this would not be very pleasant. "Uh…" she muttered, trying to get her aunt's attention.

"A second, Kaoru, I'm…" then she paused.

The teenage girl could see Tae's shoulder muscles tense under her shirt; this generally meant bad news. The woman turned her head and, with wide eyes, stared at her niece.

"Kaoru?" It seemed the 37 years old woman lost her train of thoughts -- and also forgot her previous conversation --. Her mouth was agape, not unlike the expression a fish get when pulled out of its element. "Where have you been?" She demanded, getting out of her torpor and hanging up.

"Um…"

"Do you have any idea how worried I was?"

"Err…" Sounds were easier to form then words, it seemed.

"You could have left us a message you know?" Tae strode up to her niece. The woman's face was an unpleasant mix of worry and anger.

_This aught to be painful…_ Kaoru thought, cringing.

Tae took the teenage girl by the shoulder. Her hands were cold, another sign of her anxiety. "Just what happened? Where were you?"

Kaoru fidgeted, discomfort plain on her face and a shy blush tinted her skin. "I forgot my keys."

"I thought you said you had them." Tae was exasperated. Her emotion vacillated from relieved and enraged. "And we left you a phone number in case of emergency."

"I know… but…"

"Where did you spend the night?"

With so many questions and barely enough time to answer between them, Kaoru thought that her aunt would have made a poor interrogator. "I err…"

"You didn't sleep outside, did you?"

"No! Of course not." Did the woman actually think she was that stupid?

"Then where the heck were you?"

"If you'd let me answer…" protested the girl. "I slept at someone's house."

"Who?"

Kaoru hesitated. "… A friend." It was, at least, half true. However, now, it would be hard to describe Kenshin as friend. Thankfully, that particular point would remain unknown from her aunt for a while. And if the girl could help it, the woman would not know until later. _Much _later.

The restaurateur blinked, startled. "From school?"

Again, she hesitated. "You could say that."

The older woman eyed her charge sceptically. Something about her tone, too aloof, too ambiguous, was setting all of her alarms on. Kaoru was hiding something.

"You should have called. We were beyond worried!"

The girl looked down to her feet. "I'm sorry… I… didn't want to disturb you." It was lame and she knew it, but when Kaoru realised she forgot her keys and that her tutors would not be home that night, it was exactly what had crossed her mind.

"Don't be ridiculous!"

Now Tae was torn between allowing her anger to swell or be softened by her niece's naivety. In the end, she opted to let go of the young woman's shoulders and sit on the couch a hand reaching to her forehead. Yet, another sign of stress. There was probably a migraine nesting within Tae's skull. Kaoru felt like the worst piece of inconsiderate trash on earth. Her aunt was right; she should have at least left a message on the answering machine.

_You're a real inconsiderate idiot, Kaoru. _

Tae looked up from under her hand, her brown eyes meeting Kaoru's indigo ones and the woman sighed.

"Well… I'll have to thank that friend and the parents for giving you a place to stay."

The girl eyed her aunt, shifting from one foot to the other, rather uncomfortable. She apprehended Tae's reaction. "There um… I mean… my friend doesn't live with them." She confessed.

The woman's eyes grew wide -- it usually meant trouble. "What?"

"Well… um… yeah." She felt as if her brain was about to cease all function any time soon. That is, if Tae did not kill her before the looming '_system crash_' would occur.

"… No… parents…?" Tae frowned. "Just who is that friend of yours?"

Sighing, Kaoru took a pile of bright -- rather nearly blinding-- orange post-its that rested on the coffee table and a pen. She scribbled a phone number and the girl gave her caretaker the pile and turned to her room.

"Just call that number…"

Actually, Kaoru felt horrible to push her troubles on Kenshin. Especially with her aunt in her current tensed mood. She simply hoped that he would understand. She exhaled a long breath when she closed her bedroom door. Things were about to get a little bit more difficult then they were already. Her gaze shifted through her room before resting on her father's portrait. She winced and gave the picture a sheepish grin.

"I bet you're not all that happy with this situation either… eh?" She asked the snapshot.

Koshijiro's face simply smiled at her, his blue eyes staring at her in frozen silence.

"Thought so…"

Turning the picture frame face down, the girl wondered if she should feel some sort of guilt for what she shared with Kenshin the night prior. And if so, should she be ashamed of this almost overwhelming bliss she felt deep in her heart. Her gaze drifted to the window and she sat on the bed, memories slowly embedding a large smile on her kiss-swollen lips.

"I wish I was still with him…"

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

The redheaded high school teacher barely crossed the threshold of his home when the phone rang. Startled, Kenshin did a faux-movement, the key made a strange sound in the keyhole. He blinked and attempted to pull it out… stocked. _Damn._ He tried to jiggle it, pulled and pushed it. The stubborn thing would not move an inch and the ringing of the communication device kept yelling for attention. Grunting, the young man left the door and the nearly broken lock be for the moment and strode to the phone.

"Himura." He answered, his tone slightly irritated.

"M… Mr Himura?"

Kenshin blinked, he knew that voice. "Miss Sekihara?" The woman's voice sounded slightly agitated and confused, not the usual lively tone. "What can this one do for you, Miss Sekihara?"

"I um… Kaoru told me she spent the night at your house." She explained, awkward.

Kenshin was silent for a moment, what exactly did his lovely student convey to her tutor?

"She did." He finally said.

It was Tae's turn to observe a moment of quietness. He assumed she was collecting her thoughts. If only she knew.

"Was… Was she any trouble to you?" She then asked, her voice slightly wavering.

The teacher's violet orbs drifted across the living room as he pondered over his answer. The young woman had been more then trouble to him the past few weeks. Kaoru hunted his thoughts, sometimes even invaded his dreams and daydreams. She was the cause of many changes in the young man's life and the source of his recent joy. Kamiya Kaoru was, to him, such as the fresh breeze in a hot summer day that announced a looming storm that promised cooler days nearby. His eyes spotted the forgotten pillow and blanket by the couch and a blush rose to his face. Kaoru was a whirlwind of passion too and a spring of wonders. But he certainly was not about to tell Tae such _that_, unless he had some sort of death wish, and lately, life has never been so wonderful to him. Better not to push his luck.

Kenshin smiled softly, remembering the girl's tenderness and contrasting wilderness. "Your niece is a lovely young woman, Miss Sekihara, that she is. It was no trouble at all." This should suffice.

"Ah…" there was uneasiness in the woman's voice. "Well… thank you so much for your… trouble. Should I give you some yens for the food you probably gave her?"

The man laughed light-heartedly. "Of course not. It was a pleasure to have your niece's company last night, that it was." _You have no idea how pleasurable…_ He thought, blushing furiously. Since when was he subject to such… perverse thoughts?

"You are sure?" pressed the woman.

"Absolutely positive, Miss Sekihara. There is not need for you to worry; I took good care of her, that I did." Once again, Kenshin felt his face heat up with the double meaning of his sentence. Maybe a few kicks to his rear would do the trick.

"Alright then… Thank you again Mr. Himura."

"No problem. Have a nice day, Miss Sekihara." He said, as polite as usual.

"You as well, Mr. Himura."

Kenshin hung up and turned to the living room. He had to dispose of the unused pillow and blanket. Idly, he let his fingertips glide over the polyester pillowslip, a soft smile adorning his lips. With a quiet sigh, he piled both items in his arms and returned them to the cupboard.

"I already miss her…" He muttered to himself.

Someone walked by his door and stole a glance inside. Kenshin blinked, he almost forgot about the blotched key it its hole.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

**_This was rather easy to write, and I remember saying so in the author's note on the first post. I also had a lot of fun to write it. Interaction between Kenshin and Kaoru are most pleasant to write. There's always this warm playfulness and cute, clean humour. There really was not much to correct. A few rephrasing and I had to eliminate some 'passive voice' that clashed with the flow. I did that a lot with the other chapters as well and I actually wish I could get rid of them all since it's not 'proper' written English (my teacher keeps telling me that anyway) but I believe that some are necessary. Anyway, I'm trying to level up the writing quality and I really do hope it shows… Honestly, from this point, I can't wait to be done with the other chapters. Today is the 25th of September and I've been correcting this story for about a month. Only two chapters left! Sigh… _**

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**_Eden_****_'s Epitaph_**

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_Edited by Guardian Forever_


	16. Precious Monster : Part One

**Warnings: Mild to hard swearing and blatantly romantic clichés.**

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**_Honeysuckles and Moonlight Shreds_**

_By Eden's Epitaph_

Chapter 15: _Precious Monster_

**_Part one_**

_"Say, Kenshin…?" She asked after a long moment of comfortable silence. _

_"Hum?" He was already half asleep, dozing off comfortably pressed to her breast, her hand gently stroked the crimson silk of his air, sometimes brushing the skin of his earlobe. _

_"You never told me why you fought so hard to keep Yahiko."_

_Her question got him to slightly raise his head and look into her deep ocean pools. She looked pensive with a hint of sleep still clinging to her lids. So adorable. How he loved her. The redheaded man smiled to his lover and kissed her chin before settling back on her chest. The sound of her heartbeat was soothing. _

_"Yahiko is a very precious little monster…" He said, and then felt a slight pull at his air. "Ow…"_

_"That's not an answer, mister."_

_He chuckled. "Why the sudden interest, dearest." He said, pleasantly. _

_Sweet words and pet names were, the dark haired woman discovered very early, reserved to playful chatter only. Still, every time he would call her dear, love and other some such, she could hear the deep affection he felt for her underline his gentle tone._

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Kaoru had trouble to concentrate. The day was so horribly hot and humid; everything would stick to her sweaty skin. Sighing, she shook her hand, trying to get rid of the piece of paper nearly glued there, muttering curses and irritated non-sense to the mindless object.

"Just let go already…."

The effort caused beads of sweat to pearl down her temples, clinging to her dark frilly and nearly lifeless hair, all thanks to summer's impossible weather. Finally, the frustrating piece of writing tool let go of her digits to slide down the floor and slip, cunningly, under the couch. With a growl, Kaoru bent over and patted the floor blindly in hope to retrieve the runaway paper sheet.

The young woman was not exactly in the mood for schoolwork. She would rather be outside and look, probably desperately, for a public pool to cool her heat-suffering body. It did not matter that the pools would probably be crowded with nearly half of Kyoto and that the water was, without a doubt, dirty, full of chlorine and other more disgusting but less damaging substances. It would be refreshing, and certainly not as frustrating as it was sitting inside and waiting with what little patience the young poetess was renowned for.

Two days ago, Misao had called her with great news -- so she said, anyway. The green-eyed teenager would be spending the remaining of summer break with her best friend in Kyoto. Shinomori Aoshi had accepted the '_challenge_' of Sano's trial -- or was it Yahiko's… Kenshin did not tell her much of it, nor did she ask -- and would be arriving with the energetic braided girl anytime soon.

The evil sheet slipped further under the divan than Kaoru first thought. Now kneeling between the couch and the coffee table, her arm nearly squished in the tiny crack between the floor and furniture, fingers barely touching the paper and sweat pouring almost profusely, the young woman did not hear the few knocks at the door. Though she did hear it burst open, and heard the hurried footsteps accompanied by an exclamation of joy.

"KAORU!"

It was as if a whirlwind had broken in and fell directly on Kaoru's prone figure. Arms gripped her sides and she was tossed this way and that in a fierce bear-hug, eyes slightly swirling. Had the black haired girl being her lover, the infamous '_Oro_' -- trademark of the redheaded teacher -- would have escaped her lips in a long, confused line. Instead, she made choking noise, trying to push words out of her mouth.

"Mi… Misao" She said, "c… can't… breath…"

"Oh!" And the girl let go of her breathless friend. She sat back on her rear, a hand reaching for the back of her head and grinned sheepishly, though excitement was still vibrant in the girl's emerald eyes. "Sorry, sorry!"

Kaoru smiled and straightened herself up. She found her breath and hugged her best friend, a laugh in her throat. "It's good to see you, Misao."

"I missed you." She confessed giving the girl another chocking hug.

"She needs to breathe, Misao." said a male voice from the doorway.

Looking up from behind Misao's back -- her friend had just relinquished her hold of Kaoru's windpipe --, the young woman spotted a tall, black-haired, blue-eyed man. He was dressed nicely, his face as stoic as she remembered, but mirth flashed in the coldness of his gaze color. The young woman greeted him with a curve of her mouth and got to her feet, helping her best friend along the way.

"Hello Aoshi." She greeted amiably. "You seem well." She added.

"Things are doing exceptionally well in Tokyo, you know." Misao said, slouching on the couch with a large grin, hands behind her head.

"They are?"

Aoshi nodded. "Easy cases with lots of money." He explained, though he did not seem that happy with it.

"Boring then?"

A phantom of a smile touched the man's lips and Misao chuckled.

"Bingo!" she said. "Though Jiya loves it that way. I s'pose he's gettin' old." She looked pensive for a while, and then turned her head in Kaoru's direction. "I wann'ed to ask you somethin' for a while…"

Her friend blinked. "What?"

Misao grinned. "Where's the bathroom?"

Kaoru stared at her, eyes wide, and pointed the corridor. "Down the hall, first door to your left…"

Misao sprang from the couch and hurried to the restroom, a thank you shout over her shoulder. The door slung shut, the sound bounced in the house. Kaoru cringed, grateful that her aunts were at their beloved restaurants and not home, or else, there would be retribution.

"May I talk with you a bit, Kaoru?" Said Aoshi, as if he had been waiting for his companion to leave so he could talk with her.

"Talk?"

"I noticed it when you called, but I was not sure. Now that I see you, I can tell. You changed, Kaoru." He said.

"Is that a bad thing?" She muttered, more for herself than for him, "So, what about it?"

Aoshi frowned. She sounded, slightly maybe but noticeably, abrupt. "From what I heard of Misao the last time she talked to you, you sounded depressed. She was very worried about you, especially when you did not call her back."

Hearing that, Kaoru's cheeks turned slightly red, and she looked down. That conversation took place two or three weeks ago and the young woman had but forgotten about it. From the moment her lips touched Kenshin's for the first time to this date, the confusing way she ended a conversation with her best friend, and the moments after -- crying in her aunt's arms -- had became some sort of foggy memory. The reason for it was completely eclipsed by the new, intriguing and loving relationship she shared with the redheaded teacher.

"Then you call three days ago and want to speak to me… and hang up before Misao can actually talk with you." He added, looking at the girl with those unreadable blue eyes, and she felt very small.

"You're right…" she said after a moment, eyes still glued to the floor. "I changed…"

Just as Kaoru was about to maybe give him more information, Misao returned to the room with a giant smile.

"It's been askin' out for a while." She declared.

Aoshi blinked -- one of those rare reactions to the petite girl's unusual and, more often then not, disturbing statements -- and Kaoru, feeling tension suddenly being pulled off her shoulders, puffed and giggled before bursting into an uncontrollable fit of laughter. Tears collected at the corner of her eyes such her mirth was great. Misao, quite pleased with herself for getting both a blinking eye from Aoshi and hilarity from her best friend, slouched back on the couch, giggling.

"Have you told Mr. Himura that I would like to meet with him today?" asked the man once the girls had settled down.

Kaoru nodded. "Yes," and checking the clock, she added. "He and Sanosuke should be here soon."

"And you, Kaoru?" asked Misao, giving the girl who sat beside her a questioning look. "Do you know what that whole trial's about?"

"Aoshi didn't tell you?" She inquired, stealing a glance at said man. He shrugged and slanted back into the armchair.

"I told her what I knew." He explained.

"That's about as much as I know." Kaoru said.

"I don't get it…" Burst Misao after a moment of silence, all eyes turned her way. "You told me about that Yahiko," she explained, "and he sounds like more trouble then he's worth."

Kaoru frowned. "It's not a reason not to like him… or not try and keep him, I think."

"I don't recall you being exactly a walk in the park when you were his age." said Aoshi in Misao's intention, his face straight and emotionless as usual.

For all answer, Misao showed him her tongue and Kaoru stifled a laugh, trying to hide her face behind her hand. Just as the braided girl was about to retort at last, there was a soft rap at the door and with it, a rather gruff, muffled voice.

"… don't get why… Oh… Hi." Sanosuke stood behind Kenshin, his tall frame towering with a fair two -- if not three -- feet above his redheaded friend.

"Am I interrupting something?" asked Kaoru who stood in the doorway. An amused expression adorned her pretty face.

"Only a repetitive conversation." said Kenshin, playfully mocking.

"Repetitive?" exclaimed Sano.

"You talk awfully loud!" shout girlish face that popped behind Kaoru.

Sanosuke frowned. "Aren't you too young to butt in adult's businesses?" He grumbled.

"I'm the same age as Kaoru!" She retorted sharply.

"All the more reasons for you to back off."

Misao looked like she just swallowed a very sour candy and glared at the tall man. "You look like an overgrown rooster bossing around the wrong farmyard!"

"Why you…!" seethed the tall man between gritted teeth.

Both Kenshin and Kaoru shared a discrete moment of quiet mirth. She pulled the door further more, allowing the odd pair to slip in the lobby. Sanosuke looked ready to murder the petite girl standing beside the other. Misao had a defiant glint in her green eyes as if saying '_come and get me if you dare_'.

"How are you doing?" inquired the teacher.

He watched the small girl and the tall man bicker on each other from the corner of his eyes. He could not help to compare her to a certain ten-years-old boy. He smiled.

"I'm fine." Kaoru said, her hand found his and squeezed lightly. "But I missed you." She murmured so he only could hear.

He smiled and returned the gesture. "Me too." Then let go of her hand when Misao turned her attention back to them.

"So!" She exclaimed, blatantly ignoring Sano as he was about to retort to her last taunt, earning herself a cross scowl. "I s'pose that giant ape can't be Himura Kenshin, right?"

Sanosuke's frown turned from cross to murderous. Being called an ape was not exactly a nice compliment and, no doubt, that weaselling little horror did not meant for it to be flattering.

"Weasel…" He muttered.

Kaoru had to bit her lip not to laugh when Misao's face took a dark expression. Her fists shook and were tight by her sides. It was always a big mistake to associate Misao to a weasel. Still sitting in the armchair, Aoshi observed the scene with silent appreciation. It was rare to have such quality in entertainment these days.

"I'm not sure who you are talking about, but I am Himura Kenshin, that I am." Said the redheaded man, willing to, somehow, help his best friend out of the small girl's sharp tongue-lashing.

"Thought so. I'm Makimashi Misao, Kaoru's best pal!" She proudly swung an arm around her friend's shoulders.

"Charmed." He said politely, mouth stretching into an amiable grin.

"Can't say the same…" Sanosuke complained under his breath.

On that note, Aoshi stood and walked to the small party by the entry door. His cool and collected demeanour seemed to impose for solemnity -- if only on Sanosuke. His face was straight and devoid, or so it appeared, of feelings. Time for business.

"Shinomori Aoshi, I presume." asked Kenshin pleasantly.

The man nodded. "I hope you have the files I requested?"

The teacher raised his left arm. In his hand was the old, age worn briefcase. "I retrieved all I could, including the documents of the previous trial and the child-protection agency files on Myojin Yahiko and Sagara Sanosuke."

The man nodded once more and turned to Kaoru. "You think we could use your dinning room?"

"Of course, it's just behind the living room, you can't miss it."

All three men set to work. The files were extracted from the worn suitcase and Sanosuke, Kenshin and Aoshi all sat on the round dinning table. The girls, meanwhile, left for Kaoru's bedroom, judging their presence inappropriate.

"Remind me when the trial is to take place?" Aoshi inquired as he lookedhi inquired, looking over the résumé of the first trial.

"Next Wednesday…" Kenshin answered, looking rather grim.

Aoshi frowned and Sano's fist hit the polished surface of the wooden table. The spiky headed man had been short tempered and stressed for a couple of weeks now and had trouble keeping everything under control.

"It'll be tight…" explained the lawyer.

Sanosuke gritted his teeth. "It's a lose…" He had already lost all optimism the day the court called him.

"Not necessarily. Though I think we should aim for other alternatives along with the official guardianship." Aoshi explained carefully.

"I had thought so too." admitted Kenshin.

"I thought you were here so I could keep Yahiko!" Sanosuke had secretly hoped for things to return to normal, and the suggestion that maybe he could not gain what he wanted was not helping his swollen mood.

"Sano, with your past, it was already a miracle you gained his charge in the first place."

Sanosuke crossed his arms over his chest, looking much like a spoiled brat not getting what he desired. "So what you suggest, Mister…" He barely caught himself from shouting the rest of his thought -- "_Mister I slept with my student_". He had enough mind to know when temper and mood was not required.

Kenshin, however, noticed the near slip and his face turned from amiable to stern. "You're being childish."

Sanosuke did not like Kenshin's tone of voice. For the past few days, his best friend showed perfect skills in avoiding any possible discussions of what the spiky-headed man had happened upon in the redhead's apartment. The teacher was known for keeping many secrets. Sano knew barely half of what there was to know on Himura Kenshin while his friend knew nearly everything about him. That alone was enough to make him angry, the rest was only icing on the cake.

"How old was the boy when his mother died?" Aoshi inquired seemingly unaware of the other two men's small quarrel.

"Nearly four years old." answered Sano, sobering and unfolding his arms.

"And the father?" continued the lawyer, eyes still strained on the files.

"In jail."

Sano blinked, this was one bit of information he did not have. For all he knew, the bastard had run away three months before the birth.

"For ten years?" It was Sanosuke that asked the question and not Aoshi.

Kenshin looked at him. "He got a life detention penalty for murder." He said.

"How d'you… Wait… Why didn't you tell me?"

"I thought you knew. I was witness, Sano." He told him, as if the fact was, of all things, rather oblivious. "And you never asked, that you did not."

"You was…" But he closed his mouth and a dark look gripped his features.

"The boy's grand-father… Why did you oppose for him to take Yahiko?"

Sanosuke closed his eyes and emitted a sound not unlike a growl. "The old man's a fisherman. Lives on his damn boat, either at the ducks or out in sea."

"He agreed that it was not an ideal life for a kid Yahiko's age."

The spiky headed man gritted his teeth. Just how much Kenshin knew that he did not? It was infuriating and he was sure to get deeper into the matter as soon as this meeting would be over. The redhead would have answers to give.

"It says here that there is another tutor designed by court, Himura Tomoe. Who is she?"

Kenshin sighed. "My wife… The court would not give Sano the guardianship unless a second, more trustworthy, person would accept to share tutorship."

"But the boy was sent to…" Aoshi shifted through a few files and read the name. "Seijuro Hiko and not Mrs. Himura."

"Tomoe is often away, for months at times. She would make a poor guardian."

"But you are her husband." His tone sounded full of reproach. Although Kenshin could tell it was more for being married or anything else, which made him wonder.

"I am… but Tomoe is his tutor and when the child protection agency did not reach her they set for a substitute."

"But why not you?" The dark man insisted.

"I have a history that can compare to Sano's."

Aoshi acquiesced, partly satisfied with Kenshin's answer. "About that '_history_'…"

"All the information you need should be in the files I gave you."

Sanosuke raped his fingers on the table. He was not exactly at ease. Their little melee with the yakuza was not something to be proud of and it was rather uncomfortable that a perfect stranger would come to know of such a tarnished past.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"The boy they're fightin' to keep, he is the same who kicked that soccer ball right into your face?" Misao asked, shuffling through Kaoru's CDs.

The blue-eyed girl frowned. Mixed feelings always came with that memory. The painful humiliation of being violently kissed by a dirty ball, the pleasant taste of ice-cream cones, the ducks, Kenshin's smiling purple eyes and Rumiko.

"That's him." She said.

Misao blinked. "Why would someone fight to keep such a brat?"

"I don't know," shrugged Kaoru, though she suddenly felt rather curious. "It must have something to do with the past."

The other girl's braid lashed about when she whirled with a grin toward the CD player. "It obviously _has_ somethin' to do with the past." She said mischievously giving her friend a look that paired with her voice. "And isn't Himura your teacher?"

Kaoru blushed and looked away. She should have seen that one coming. "Yes…"

Misao pressed the play button. "Oh…" Her tone was that of fake surprise and laughter lingered in the back-tones. The petite girl was on teasing mode. Warning signs flashed in Kaoru's mind. Danger was on the way.

She pasted a mask of indifference and looked at her friend. "What are you '_oh-ing_' for?"

The girl raised an eyebrow and grinned. "You're hidin' somethin'"

"No, I'm not."

Misao's grin widened. "Yes you are!" And she leaped on the bed. "Come on, you can tell me. Am I not your best friend?" To this she added her world famed '_puppy-dog-eyes_' toped with her well practiced '_pouting lips_' that were bound to crack Kaoru's defence.

She hesitated. "Misao, it's nothing much, really." If one considered sleeping with someone or having most of your thoughts converging to that one person '_nothing much_' that is…

The green-eyed girl looked sceptical. "I know you're the kind of girl that wants to help everybody, but… Callin' on us just to be nice…"

Kaoru frowned. "We're just friends. Is there something wrong with that?"

"Just friends?"

"… good friends." She admitted, staring at her hands.

"How _good _a friend is he to you?"

Kaoru did not like the implied meaning behind her words. Memories of their night spent together, and the morning after swarm her memory. Kenshin had been the epitome of gentleness. He made her feel cared for, precious, desired, a feat no man ever accomplished. And it was not only when he was touching her. A single glance could make her heart melt, a smile from him turned her legs to jelly and being in his presence was soothing all her fears, all her pain, all her troubles.

It was obvious, Kaoru was in love with Himura Kenshin and something told her that he was not far from feeling the same. But telling Misao that what the girl might think to be simple infatuation was actually a double sided attraction blooming into what Kaoru hoped to be a strong bound…

"He's… the only friend I have here." This should be enough to quench Misao's curiosity, shouldn't it?

Misao's grinning face sobered quite unexpectedly and Kaoru blinked. Was it in the way she said it or this odd itching in her eyes that told of emotions on the brink of breaking out of her control that cause the mischievous instinct of her best friend to relax its hold? Suddenly, the petite girl was looking at Kaoru as if she saw her for the first time.

"What happened between you?" She asked, settling to sit beside her friend.

The black-haired young woman let her gaze travel from one framed picture to the other, remembering how Kenshin had once did the same, not so long ago.

"Kenshin is unlike any teacher… unlike any person I met so far." She started. "He shows more concern than it should be necessary. Even though he's an enigma in himself… I feel like I know him for ages… and it's so easy to confide in him." She added with a grin.

Misao also smiled. "Sounds like he's a very special someone…"

Kaoru blinked. "Special..." She leaned back on the mattress, using her arms for headrest and stared at the ceiling. "Yeah…. You could say it that way."

"He doesn't look very old." Misao mused.

"I think he's 28 or something… Not much older than Aoshi." Kaoru closed her eyes, memories swirling within her mind, and she smiled. "He's not an ordinary teacher either. You remember that detention I got?" Misao nodded. "Amazingly, I was the only one to get detention on that day and it was one of the first warm days of spring too… And Kenshin was there." Kaoru grinned. "I guess he got tired of being stuck inside in such a beautiful day… the rest of detention was spent outside, watching the clouds."

"Neat…" muttered Misao, looking at the far away look in her best friends sapphire eyes and her smile broadened. "I remember you telling me you spent a day with him later too, eating ice-cream on the ducks…"

Kaoru nodded. "That day I decided to do my homework outside in a park not very far from here. I've met Yahiko twice before that day. You know… he kind of reminds me of you in a way…"

Misao made a playful face of irritation. "I don't recall going around and kicking soccer balls in people's face."

Kaoru giggled. "I don't think he actually planed on hurting me." Then she turned a little bit more serious. "I met Kenshin's wife that day too…"

The braided-girl blinked. "He's married?" Then she muttered something that sounded like '_bummer_', her face taking a nearly crestfallen quality that made Kaoru smile.

"She's a very gracious woman, posed and calm." She remembered the impression Tomoe left her. Compared to that woman, Kaoru felt like a dirty kid playing in the sandbox. It made her wonder why Kenshin turned toward her instead of trying to rebuild his courant failing relationship.

"Kaoru…"

Said girl blinked. She had not realised that for a moment, her expression had become slightly forlorn. Talking about Tomoe, although Kenshin already told her he no longer loved the woman, still made Kaoru feel slightly out of league. She felt like a little girl pretending to be a grown up when she compared to the graceful Tomoe.

"I know his past is not as ours… His mother, godfather… Sanosuke… Tomoe…" Kaoru knew Misao would be curious to know the whole story. The blue-eyed girl herself wished she knew that story as well. "I only know bits as he reveals them. He's very generous of himself, just not of his mind."

"Jiya talked to your aunts the other day. They sounded concern about you. I've been worried too." She admitted.

Kaoru looked at her with an apologizing smile. "Sorry… Stuff's been different since my father died. All that fuss about getting me out of Tokyo and the new school. People here are less open-minded than in Tokyo, you know. I'm almost surprised Kenshin can keep a job here…"

"Say…" Misao asked once the music she had picked died away, the CD had reached the last notes of the last song. "How was that field trip?"

"It was ok…"

"Just ok?"

Kaoru grinned. "There were terrible moments and equally good ones."

Misao frowned and nudged her friend on the side, pocking the girl's ribs insistently. "Come on, you won't tell me just that? Himura was there, wasn't he?"

"There was an issue with Rumiko. Fate wanted me to share a cabin with her and two of her friends, I got kicked out."

"That girl… If I see her, I swear I'm gonna give her a rough piece of my mind!" declared Misao, jumping off the bed and brandishing her fist, threatening the air.

Kaoru laughed and proceeded to tell her friend a censored version of her sparing match with Kenshin and the lovely dinner they shared. Although she omitted the details of the inexplicable complication of sleeping near the redheaded, the rest of the tale remained authentic.

"When we returned, Tae and Sae were away and I seemed to have forgotten my keys…" Kaoru sighed, that little bit of inadvertence sounded out of character. She still could not explain why the keys staid on her bedside table when, usually, as soon as she woke up they went straight into her pocket. "Kenshin did not want me to spend the day waiting for them by the door way… Had he left me there, I would not only spend the day waiting, but the night as well."

"What did you do then?" Misao sounded eager. Could she be seeing through the laps of her story and realised that the teacher was really more then just a friend?

"He was supposed to dine with his family that night. I admit I was a bit uncomfortable with the idea. I mean… I never expected to meet his family…" She was silent for a moment and Misao groaned.

"Don't leave me hangin' girl!" She nudged. "I wanna know the rest."

Kaoru raised an eyebrow to tease her friend. "I see why they call you '_weasel_'…"

The girl frowned and crossed her arms over her chest. "Not you too!"

The blue-eyed giggled. "Yahiko is under the care of Kenshin's godfather." She said. "You're right to say he's a brat, but… There's something about him that… kind of forces you to like him. I met Kenshin's mother too. A very sweet woman, just like her son…" Kaoru's eyes took a dream-like quality as she recalled Lily-Ann Randlett. "Mr. Hiko is the complete opposite though. Gruff, tall, bulky, arrogant, but I think he truly like his godchild, though I doubt he'd ever admit it."

"So you spent the night there?" Her friend was very excited about those little bit of information, though she suspected a lot has been left out.

"… No."

Misao's eyes grew to rival the size of saucers. "Where?"

Kaoru was slightly reluctant to give that bit of information. It was, for all means, the first night of intimacy she ever had with anyone and she was not ready to tell Misao or the rest of the world about that, not yet anyway. If her friend could decipher that Kenshin and her were either close to be or already an item did not bother her much, but confessing so much was not safe. Not when she was still his student.

"I slept at his place, that's from where I called the other day."

"Slept?"

Kaoru frowned. "He has a comfortable couch…" She hated to lie, but there seemed to be no other solutions for the moment. She promised herself, though, that as soon as the school year would be over, Misao would learn the truth she must already be suspecting.

"Right…"

Fate decided to give Kaoru one last stroke of chance. A knock came from the bedroom door, the knob twisted and Aoshi's face slipped in.

"Misao, we'll be leaving." He said.

Said girl moaned. "Not just yet! I've only just started catchin' up on Kaoru's passionate life in Kyoto!"

The man sighed. "I have other errands to take care of."

"But…" Her protest seemed to fall on deaf ears.

"Tomorrow we'll go sightseeing."

Kaoru smiled, this was as much of a concession when it came to Aoshi. Misao had always had a strong crush, of not love, for that man, ever since he walked into their lives when she was five years old. The petite girl might protest, but she enjoyed spending time with Aoshi. He might not show it, but Kaoru suspected the tall man actually felt something similar, just not to Misao's extends. He did look like a caring big brother… in a gloomy sort of way.

"Aw man… Alright but…" She turned to Kaoru. "You better be ready for a big day tomorrow, 'cause I'm plannin' for funs and games!"

The girl grinned. "Sure!"

The three proceeded to the door. Misao hugged her friend with a might that nearly crushed her ribcage. Kenshin had a short, discreet conversation with Aoshi. Sano still sat at the dinner table, brooding it seemed.

"How did it go?" Kaoru asked once the pair was gone.

"Not to Sano's expectations…" said Kenshin.

"He sounds as if it's a loosing battle already." shouted Sanosuke.

"Surely that's not what he meant…" Kaoru tried to lighten him up.

"What do _you _know?" He almost spat the words, perching his chair on two legs and swinging slightly, arms crossed over his broad chest.

Kaoru frowned. "I lived most of my life with those two. I know Aoshi never to let anyone down. That man knows to find solutions to problems that seem unsolvable."

"Find a solution to 3 years of jail." growled the spiky headed man.

"Sano…" Kenshin did not exactly appreciate the way he was talking to Kaoru. Then again, Sano was not a man to befriend easily.

"Sanosuke… I can imagine how difficult the situation can be," she said, taking a chair at the table. "I can't say I've been through the same. The worse I got through was my father being murdered a year ago." Saying it still managed to bring tears in her eyes. She shook her head and felt the gentle pressure of Kenshin's hand on her shoulder. "Aoshi was the one who took the case as procurer… What I mean to say is that I have faith in him. If there's a solution, he's the one you need."

Sano looked at her as if he had seen her for the first time. Those bright blue eyes, that cute carefree-looking face and girlish ponytail, they were all familiar, but the strength in her words, the power in her voice, the confidence in her speech were not. Maybe there was a reason why Kenshin fell for her. He gave her a smug grin, not willing to lighten up completely, but allowing his heart to open up to her a little bit more.

"I'll take your words for it, Missy." He said,

Kaoru grinned and Kenshin smiled.

"I would like speak with you tonight, you think you can join me for dinner?" He asked the girl.

Kaoru nodded, both ignored the odd glare Sanosuke gave them.

"I'll wait for you in the car…" Sano said to his friend, already striding toward the door. "Don't take forever." He warned Kenshin, a suspicious light in his brown eyes, though it looked more playful than accusatory.

Kaoru blushed though the redhead merely laughed when his friend walked out of the apartment.

"I keep thinking he doesn't like me much." muttered Kaoru.

"He has his own way in being friendly, that he does." He said, encouragingly, and caressed her cheek with his thumb. "Don't worry so much about it."

Kaoru smiled, "Only if you ask me to."

Chuckling, he brushed his lips lightly on hers. "I'll see you tonight."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Kenshin was not much for bars and drinking, especially in the middle of the day but under Sanosuke's request, he drove them to a small pub not far from Kenshin's apartment. The tall man was sitting on front of him, taking large swings of a cheep bear he bought only minutes ago. The redhead simply sip a coffee cup that tasted more like old dish water than anything else, no matter how much sugar and milk he poured in the concoction.

"Kenshin…" He asked after eying his friend for nearly five minutes.

Said man looked up from his mug. "Hum?" He had been musing about Kaoru and their dinner tonight, almost completely forgetting the rest of the world.

"There's something that's been naggin' at me… about Yoshiki." He seemed both eager and reluctant to know.

"I thought you knew." Kenshin murmured, surprised by Sano's lack of knowledge. "He's the one who pulled the trigger." Muttered the teacher, a finger absently touching the cross scare on his left cheek.

"He was...? The bastard…" It was clear that Sanosuke never liked Myojin Yoshiki, but this only fuelled his hatred. "Hope he'll rot in his hole for years on… the damned prick…"

Kenshin nodded, there was more to that story then he was willing to tell his friend for fear of dire consequences.

"And what was all that shit about the old man?" He was not about to let Kenshin off the hook so soon.

The redhead sighed and took a sip of the mud the barkeeper called coffee. "The child agency had already contacted him by the time we called on the court." He explained. "I needed to make sure it would not cause any more problems then necessary. He was actually relieved that you were trying to keep Yahiko."

"He was?" This was much of a surprise for the spiky headed young man.

Kenshin smiled sadly. "He cared a lot for her."

"Had a strange way to show it, keeping us practically locked on that rotting thin can he calls boat." muttered Sano before he swallowed the rest of his bear.

"I believe he did his best, that I do."

Sanosuke snorted. "Look who's talking."

Kenshin frowned. "What is that supposed to mean."

"Kenshin," he said, leaving his anger to the side for the time being. "I can't deny that the Missy is a good person… but what about Tomoe. You're married, man! I thought you had more brains than that."

"Tomoe doesn't worry me much where Kaoru is concerned." He said, his lavender eyes turning softer at the simple mentioning of the girl's name.

"You don't expect to hide your affair from Tomoe, do you?"

"Sano, there seem to be something you just don't quite grasp." Kenshin's eyes bore into his brown ones with an intensity Sano had not seen for years in the small man. "I have no intention of hiding my '_affair_', that I don't." A distant smile curved his lips. "I love her, Sano…"

Sanosuke made a strange face. "Don't go all mushy on me, man."

The redheaded man smirked, amused and leaned forward. "My feelings for that young woman far outshine those I once held for Tomoe. To be honest, everyday, they grow in intensity."

Sano made a grimace and snatched the new bottle a waitress had just brought him out of her hands. "You sound like a love-sick teenager…"

Kenshin grinned. "I _feel_ like a love-sick teenager."

The spiky headed man sniffed. "Spare me… Still, I have trouble understanding how you of all people can actually be unfaithful."

The teacher chuckled. "Coming from anyone else, I wouldn't have been surprised but from a man that never had a single serious girlfriend…"

"Exactly why I have trouble imagin' you with a mistress. You're too serious for that kinda stuff."

Kenshin frowned. "I never said I wasn't serious about Kaoru."

"But, Kenshin, you can't play in Tomoe's back like that… not after… you know."

"Sano… My marriage with her turned out to be more of a masquerade than I was willing to admit, that it was. Exactly who is playing in whose back?" The last had been barely uttered. "But you're right, it can't go on like this."

"Glad you see my point." said the man, nearly empting his new bottle. "Then what...? I swear if you break that girl's heart…"

"I've been given a similar warning from Aoshi… But I don't plan on hurting her, that I don't." Kenshin was actually smiling when he said that.

This got Sanosuke curious. "So what?"

"I'm going to end it?"

The tall man frowned. "Your affair?"

"No!" The idea actually made him sick. Had he not just said he was head over heals for the bright young lady? "My marriage…"

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Kaoru had been anxious all day. The promise of spending the evening with Kenshin was thrilling to the point not to know what to do with her self. Somehow, she stormed through her homework, almost botching the whole had Sae not reviewed her work when she returned home.

"My... what's gotten into you?" inquired her aunt as she watched Kaoru pace the living room.

"I… um…" Kaoru blushed and sat on the armchair, tilted her head back and closed her eyes. "Does it trouble you if I don't dine with you guys tonight?"

Sae sat on the cough and leaned on the armrest. "And why is that?"

"I'll be eating with a friend."

"Misao is here?" She sounded excited. "I haven't seen that girl in ages… How is she?"

Kaoru blinked, she had almost forgotten about Aoshi and Misao, even though she spent most of the afternoon with them. Kenshin had that ability to take more room in her brain-space then it was necessarily required.

"As energetic as ever… But…"

"Where are you two going to eat? Not fast-food I hope, you know how bad that is for your health. You're still growing you know."

The girl frowned; will that woman ever stop assuming things? "I'm not eating with Misao…"

Sae blinked, and then eyed her niece suspiciously. "Kaoru…"

The young woman looked away. "It's not what you think."

"I know Mr. Himura is a fine young man, but Kaoru… Eating out with your teacher, don't you think it sounds a bit odd?"

If only she knew…

"Aunt Sae, I promise you there's nothing… troubling about it. I'll be back at 10… It's just dinner with a friend." How she hated to lie. Kenshin was far from simply being her friend.

If were he were not married Kaoru would not fear to tell her aunts. That fact made her feel slightly uncomfortable. Tomoe seemed to be a very charming woman and she must have loved Kenshin too if she married him, even though he claimed her feelings for him were different even back then. Soon, the girl hoped, things would be on a more explainable level.

Sae looked at her niece, worried. "Is that the reason why you've been so excited all afternoon?"

Kaoru blushed once more. She was too transparent, if things kept going that way, the whole world would know of her difficult relationship with her married teacher. What a scandal! Rumiko would be delighted though.

"Not exactly… Tomorrow I'm supposed to go sightseeing with Misao and Aoshi…" Sae looked suspicious, but at least the blue-eyed girl tried.

The woman sighed. "I suppose if you're back by 10…"

Kaoru beamed. "Thank you!" She hugged her aunt forcefully, nearly strangling the poor woman.

"I think you're hanging around Misao too much…" She coughed.

Kaoru grinned, her face taking a glimmer Sae had not seen since before Koshijiro's death. Almost leaping with joy, the young woman disappeared in her bedroom, humming lightly. Sae sighed, that girl was obviously in love, but what of the young man her heart chose? Would he break the poor girl's heart shamelessly as so many men did before to unfortunate young women? Worse… would he use her and then… The restaurateur did not dare to think of such outcomes. Besides, Sae knew Kenshin was a brave young man. At worse, he would simply and politely reject Kaoru… Though, somehow, she feared complications at the wake.

A soft drumming steered her from her reveries. With a slight outtake, Sae finally decided to let fate decide weather Kaoru would make the biggest mistake of her life or the best decision she ever made. Pasting a smile on her face, the woman strode to the door and opened it. Behind -- hair bright crimson, purple eyes smiling and handsome face -- stood Himura Kenshin. He seemed to conceal something behind his back and was doing a wonderful job at it, for no matter how the woman would turn and twist her head she could not steal a single glimpse at whatever it was.

"Good evening, Mr. Himura." She greeted, still trying to discover the mysterious object so carefully guarded out her praying eyes.

"Good evening to you as well, Miss Sekihara. How are you doing?" He said amiably, smiling.

"I'm a bit tired from work, but I'm perfectly fine, thank you."

It was obvious the two of them were feeling uncomfortable. Sae suspected something, Kenshin feared he would give them away and acted even more suspiciously.

"Would you like to come in?" She suggested, smiling so brightly Kenshin mused over the use of sunglasses.

"Thank you." He said and took off his shoes, still managing to hid whatever it was from Sae's sight, and walk into the living room.

"Have a seat." She offered him politely.

"I don't think that shall be necessary, that I don't…" His own smile started to feel fake and a nervous sweat drop collected at the base of his neck.

"Kaoru told me the both of you would be out for dinner tonight." The woman sat on the couch and observed the man's reaction.

He simply nodded.

"May I ask your purpose?" Better say it bluntly than spin around the bottle was Sae's motto.

Kenshin blinked. "Oro… P... Purpose?" he stuttered, purple eyes now wide opened. "I have no intention of doing anything that may indispose your niece, that I don't. If that is what worries you, Miss Sekihara."

"Mr. Himura, Kaoru is young and easily influenced. You know how kids are when they reach her age." Through all that, the woman managed to keep her charming smile as if she were merely talking about the weather.

Kenshin, however, smiled at her, understanding her point. "I have no intention of hurting Miss Kaoru. She has become, if I dare to say so, a rather precious friend, that she has. I assure you no harm shall come to her."

"I'll take your words for it, Mr. Himura. Though I hope you know what you are doing."

The teacher felt sweat trickling down his nape when Sae's smiling eyes did not leave his, ending in some kind of staring contest. That woman was sharp. She may not know the entire story, but her suspicions seemed to be heading in the right direction. How long will Kaoru be able to conceal their relationship from such an astute woman, if she had not already figured it all out, that is?

A small cough interrupted the silent '_friendly_' will-spare and Kenshin turned to look in the direction of the sound. Standing in the hallway, Kaoru stared at them, her expression rather displeased, although her animosity was directed toward her aunt and not him. Even when frowning, the young woman was lovely in that light lavender summer-dress. There were imprints of sky-blue butterflies fluttering all over the soft looking material and the bust, sewed like a corsage, underlined her chest adorably. The colors of her clothes seemed to vivify her already enticing blue eyes. Her dark, silken hair was pulled up in the usual ponytail and a matching ribbon tied the lot. Kenshin did not fall in love with her looks, but he could not deny that Kaoru was a very beautiful young woman.

"Are you ready?" He asked.

Kaoru smiled and nodded. "I'll be back by ten, Aunt Sae." She assured as she slipped into a pair low-heal sandals that looked much healthier than her usual brown shoes.

Kenshin opened the door for her and glanced back inside, giving Sae a reassuring smile. "Don't worry, Miss Sekihara," then closed the door.

"Was there a problem with my aunt?" Kaoru asked as she pulled the passenger door.

He smiled, his head popped over the top of the car. "If you consider curiosity and protectiveness a problem…" He slipped inside the vehicle as his lover did. "Do you think she suspects something?"

She grinned, fastening her seatbelt. "If it's the case, we're in hot waters. Prepare for torture and pain."

He laughed. "That violent?"

"For sensitive ears only." She teased.

Chuckling, Kenshin bent across the staff. "You look lovely," he said, handing her the flower he had struggled to keep from Sae's eyes.

Kaoru blinked and took the offered plant. A simple white daisy still sporting lovely green leaves. Pulling it to her nose and inhaling the fresh fragrance of greenhouse-grown flower, she giggled.

"Something you find funny?" The redheaded teacher inquired.

"I just thought it all looked a bit like those old sappy romance movies from North America." She said. "Didn't expect you to fall into clichés…"

Saying this, she fingered the white petals of the flower, remembering with a certain fondness the days when she used to wonder if someone loved her… a little bit… a lot… passionately… or not at all. If she remembered well, there was a trick to get the best possible answer.

"I shall spoil you in clichés if you like them." He teased.

She smiled. "I like simple things… But I guess you should get some praise for trying."

"Am I to get a reward?" He leaned even more toward her, a teasing smile playing on his lips.

"I suppose a thank you is required." She taunted.

"Just a simple thank you, that's all I get for the trouble?" He sounded humorously disappointed.

Kaoru leaned forward. "What did you expect?" She asked. "A kiss?"

"Something along that line, I suppose, that I do."

Playing along, Kaoru brought her face closer to his and planted a tender kiss on the tip of his nose. At Kenshin's startled face, she showed him her tongue. He smirked and, unexpectedly, moved forward and caught the taunting limb, sucked on it and released it with a satisfied grin. Kaoru blushed and pulled away.

"That's not fair." She whined.

"Fair enough considering that I had to wait and suffer Miss Sekihara's interrogatory." He said and started the engine.

She grimaced once more and winked, feeling mischievous. Kenshin pulled the car out of the parking lot and they drove in comfortable silence for a while. The sun was barely about to set, tainting the sky in vivid shades of scarlet, pink and turquoise.

"Where are we going?" She asked.

"To a little restaurant I know by the ducks. The view is very pleasant there, that it is."

In fact, the view was lovely. The restaurant was a two story high building that used to be a warehouse for sea merchants. The original ancient Japanese style of the house was kept authentic though the interior got revamped to accommodate the new kind of costumers. All around it, on a balcony, tables were scattered here and there offering yet another pleasant way to share a meal. Not only was it pretty, but the landscape was chosen specifically. The warehouse was at the far end of the ducks, half of it was, thus, surrounded by water. The sun seemed to have chosen that particular angel to set that night, igniting the sea in flaming colors. It was breathtaking.

However, they did not eat at that restaurant. They simply sat down on the wooden part of the duck, feet dangly from the edge sharing food they bought in an old-fashioned Japanese outdoor restaurant they found on their way.

"Is that what you meant when you said you'd spoil me in clichés?" Ask Kaoru eyeing the scenery.

"Depends of your conception of what is 'cliché'." said Kenshin before he took a mouthful of noodles.

Kaoru eyed their surrounding and said. "Well I suppose in small amount, but this looks a bit overwhelming, don't you think?"

The teacher grinned. "Simple things, right?"

She nodded, smiling. "But I appreciate the effort."

Choosing a plain roll from the box they set between them with his chopsticks, the young man took a not so subtle side-glance to his lover. "May this one hope for a reward?"

"Maybe…" She giggled.

Half of their dinner had been eaten when Kaoru's expression turned from blissfully careless to slightly serious. Munching on a roll, she stared at the rippling waves as they lulled the few floating seabirds nestling nearby.

"I've been thinking about returning to Tokyo." She declared after a long moment of silence.

"Thinking?" She did not sound as if it was merely a simple thought.

"For two months now…"

"And?" He pressed.

"I still own my family's dojo, _Kamiya Kashin_. I could easily live there. There's a house there. My father used to tell me how his grandparents loved to live there and how sad he felt when he had to close the house…" She said, her blue eyes taking a far away quality.

Kenshin nodded. The idea of Kaoru living in an old dojo seemed to suite her very well in all aspects of her personality.

"I too, have been thinking, that I have." He confessed.

"Thinking about what?"

"Divorce…" He told her a sad smile on his lips.

"I… um…" She did not know what to say, torn between embarrassment and a feeling of guilt that she could not quite explain. She played with her noodles and chopsticks straining not to look at him.

"It's been in my mind for a few years." He reassured her, feeling her change in mood. "It had only been a simple consideration, that it has. Though now things seem to have changed…" giving her a soft smile, he added, true to his polite self. "That they have."

She gave him a shy grin though she was looking more at the rest of her meal than him. "May I ask… why now?"

His eyes turned soft, softer than she ever saw them and he leaned toward her. His fingers brushed her hand, tickling the flesh gently before he took hold of it and brought her knuckles to his mouth. His lips grazed the skin softly, gliding from fingers to wrist, and sent shivers up her arm. When Kenshin looked up, her gaze was wide and fixed on him, there was that lovely blush ever so present on her cheeks too, and he smiled.

"This one seems to have fallen in love, that he has…" he whispered.

At lost for words, unprepared for such a declaration, all Kaoru could do was smile, her eyes shining brightly and inclined her head, moulding her lips to his. Her kiss was tender and soft… giving more than taking, and speaking louder then any words she could have uttered. His fingers slid across the smooth skin of her cheeks when he pulled away. It had tasted of soba noodles and plain rolls; he never knew how such a flavour could be so pleasant.

"When do you plan to return to Tokyo?" he asked, gaze locked with hers.

"In time to enter college…" She murmured, still entranced it seemed.

"Have you talked about it with Miss Sae and Miss Tae?" He wondered.

"Not yet… I… I still am not sure how to tell them… Though I'll be turning 18 soon." She sighed. "There's… a reason why I could not be in Tokyo for a while." Kaoru shook her head, her gaze falling to their joined fingers. "I hope all will be done when the school year is over… maybe it's just wishful thinking though."

He did not press the subject, simply manoeuvred around it. "How do you think you'll survive on your own?"

She stayed silent for a moment, her face turning more serious as her mind worked over the problem he just pointed. Of course, she had thought about it, but it was only until very recently that the project became a certainty in her mind.

"I could teach kendo… I mean, my father had the time to complete my training over the years…" Her voice was strained, heavy with emotion, and the young woman sighed. "But I suppose I'll have to take some sort of job on the side as well… Reopening the dojo after so many years…"

Kenshin studied her features for a moment. She looked determined, ready for any concession and prepared for any sacrifice along the way. Willing to get her attention back to him, the writing and literature teacher reaffirmed his hold of Kaoru's hand. She looked up and saw his smiling amethyst eyes shining with the last rays of the setting sun.

"Maybe…" He started, his voice held a touch of mystery. "Leaving Kyoto is not such a bad idea, that it is not."

Sapphire eyes widened and brightened. Her face seemed to glow and, not thinking, she leaped. Her arms tangled around his neck, though the force pushed them both to the floor and knocked the rest of their food over the edge, into the saline water of the ducks. Kaoru was giggling and Kenshin had laughter shining in his purple depths. Only ten months away from complete bless. If life would permit it, that is.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

**_Seriously, I don't much care clichés. I rather avoid them but sometimes they are fun to play with if you can make them original. (Or maybe I'm simply in a denial…) I sincerely hope it this chapter did not sound too corny or too mushy or fluffy… I don't know why I believe that, but something that's too cute, too perfect sounds a bit fake, but I don't want Kenshin and Kaoru's relationship to sound fake. I want it to be an honest and open mind one. Of course it's still early in their relationship so I still have time to develop even more depth… Ah, forgive me, I'm sometimes very insecure. I was listening to a lot of Our Lady Peace when I wrote this chapter, that probably explains it… _**

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**_Eden's Epitaph_**

_Edited by Guardian Forever_


	17. Precious Monster : Part Two

**Warnings: Mild swearing and sexually related jokes.**

**__**

**_Honeysuckles and Moonlight Shreds_**

_By Eden's Epitaph_

Chapter 16: _Precious Monster_

**_Part Two_**

All was quiet and hushed. It felt like a shrine or a church and most faces were neutral in the Justice Hall of Kyoto. That was the first things Kaoru noticed when she stepped in. The young woman was not found of justice related buildings although she has been surrounded by them growing up. She simply could not get used to the feel of them.

Approximately an hour ago, Aoshi, followed by Sano, Kenshin, Hiko and Yahiko had walked into courtroom and barely fifteen minutes later, Misao snuck in, curious as ever, leaving the black haired girl alone in the hall. She was starting to feel quite lonely and thoroughly bored. Why did she tag along anyway? She knew from the beginning the wait would be long and her presence would be useless. What argument won over long wait and uselessness?

Lately, her aunts had been acting more protective, especially when Kenshin was concerned. There were no doubts in her mind anymore, they suspected something. The prospect was both unnerving and irritating. To which degree did they suspect a relationship between their nice and her teacher? Had Tae or Sae already jumped to real conclusions as they were so adamantly prone to, or has their imagination suddenly tamed? It did not change the fact that they kept asking of Kaoru's whereabouts and the persons accompanying her for the last three or some days.

When Kaoru returned home after her dinner with Kenshin, she found Sae sitting half asleep in the armchair, waiting. The young woman had returned home sharp on time with maybe barely a second late -- parting with her lover had turned out more difficult than earlier presumed. As soon as she stepped it, her aunt sprang back to life and Kaoru was pulled into some sort of interrogatory, struggling to keep the daisy out of the woman's scrutinizing gaze. Sae's questioning remained fairly discreet, only wondering where the teacher took the girl, how was the food and the most intriguing of all, had he treated her well.

Kaoru did feel slightly guilty to hide her blossoming love from such a caring parent. Red tinted her cheeks thinking of what exactly she was so desperate to keep for herself. It was simply too embarrassing and too dangerous to reveal. But maybe, she thought, it would prove even more dangerous should she keep silence for too long. The raven-haired teenager knew for certain that sooner or later the truth would be discovered and she feared her tutors' reaction.

The next day Tae seemed to have heard of the whole story for Kaoru had to go through a similar questioning. Their concerns were touching but also made her feel uncomfortable. Thankfully, Misao happened to choose that exact moment to pop out of nowhere and drag her away. Apparently, Aoshi had left the hotel early that morning to meet with Yahiko and his current guardian. Kaoru vaguely wondered if he would be meeting with Lily-Ann as well. Would the woman's particular state open another door for Sano to retrieve the guard of the little spiky-headed monster?

Yet so many questions that should remain, at least for the moment, unanswered. The afternoon of sightseeing with the green-eyed tornado turned out to be not as pleasant as envisioned. A particular not so chance-encounter left a bitter taste in the back of the young woman's throat. They had been visiting an old Shinto shrine when, of all people, Misao tripped on Yamazaki Rumiko. Issued abusive language and rash warnings as well as verbal abuse directed toward the misfortunate Kaoru.

"_I saw you and Mr. Himura the other day._"

That actually caused quite a reaction. Kaoru had to fight a blush and force her face to look more carelessly surprised then shocked. She doubt her efforts paid but she still believe them to be commendable.

"_Don't play dumb, Miss Puddle. I know what's going on between the two of you._"

Kaoru could clearly recall the warning blaze in the girl's eyes.

"_I'll bring you down._"

If that was what people called being in '_hot waters_', it defiantly did not feel that heated. More like chilling to the bone. The young woman knew her new relationship would be difficult to deal with when other people would be concerned although Kaoru had dared to hope those who held a grudge toward either of them would be eclipsed with the wave of some miraculous magic wand. How simplistically naïve of her to have thought so! Nothing was so easy in the real life, she should have known.

Shaking her head, Kaoru returned her wandering mind toward the book spread on her laps. She had to finish this before the next day or else she would be in trouble… even if she had a particular situation with the teacher. Academically speaking, the young high school student did not fear going through favouritism. Kenshin was fair and if Kaoru gave him poor results in his class, he would certainly not boost her grades just to make her happy… would he? She smiled gruffly, almost mocking her slight faithlessness. Of course, he would not.

There was still the problem of the rumour running around every corner of Kyoto High. It was bound to cause more ruckuses as soon as Rumiko would blabber about Kaoru and the Writing and Literature teacher leaving together after the school trip. That and the fact that she slept in the same cabin as he, not to mention they shared a seat in the bus ride. No matter what, next Monday was promising its share of unpleasantness.

The young woman frowned, her dark eyebrow creasing in worry and she sighed. There really was not a lot holding her back in Kyoto. Before Rumiko would interrupt the two girl's fun, Kaoru had spluttered out something about returning to Tokyo to her friend. Unconsciously, she groaned remembering the incident. She had been careless, remembering Seta Soujiro and learning that he had stolen her title without even a fight. The black-haired girl promised to give him a piece of her mind _as soon as she returns_.

Big mistake.

Kaoru knew to watch her words when Misao was around. How could she forget something so important like _holding her tongue_? Afterwards, the braided whirlwind kept blabbering about the possibilities and, rather discomfited, her friend tried to calm her down. It was merely a possibility, Kaoru had told her. It had high probabilities but still it was just a possibility.

Pinching her temples, the teenager sighed. She still had to talk with her aunts over the matter and with the situation she was in -- especially her delicate relationship with the high school teacher -- the sisters were not all ears to their niece's demands and desires. In addition, the city was still unsafe for her to return. A headache threatened to submerge and Kaoru sighed in slight irritation.

"It's a troublesome afternoon, that it is." said a soft voice at her side.

The girl flinched, startled, and blinked. "Ah…Kenshin! You surprised me."

The redhead smiled apologetically and sat beside her, his lips brushed her cheek and she blushed. "You look worried, that you do."

"It's fine," she said, brushing the subject aside. "How things are going in there?"

It was his turn to frown. "The judge somehow reminds me of Hiko…" To that Kaoru giggled but Kenshin's face remained anxious although his lips did curve a slight bit up. "The jury looks like they've been slipping in beds of thorns for god-knows how long. None of them seem inclined to trust Sano. Though I don't blame them…"

"Sounds bad…"

A faint grin spread on his face and his purple gaze met her blue one. "Though Aoshi is every bit as incredible as you said. He is a cleaver young man, that he is." But his optimism disappeared. "It's really too bad they have a lawyer just as good."

Kaoru looked down. "So we really can't tell for the moment…" She muttered.

He reached for her hand and squeezed. "You were the one to suggest Mr. Shinomori. Show a little more confidence… hum?"

With his other hand, he nudged her chin up until their eyes met and smiled softly. Kaoru looked sleep deprived, her eyes darker than usual and a tinge of worry created a barely noticeable fog that covered the generally brilliant glow of her irises. Then she pulled up a faint smile and leaned into his touch.

"Alright…" she stated and her eyes widened in shock. "Misao?"

Kenshin seemed to freeze for nearly a second then plastered a grin on his face and turned around to greet the girl. "You left the courtroom, Miss Misao?"

The girl's green eyes flashed a mischievous glint that was gone the next moment replaced by an expression of embarrassment and a rather fake smile. She pulled her arms behind her head and her expression became almost childish.

"I don't really much understand what's going on… and I, sorta…, fell asleep halfway."

Kaoru giggled and Kenshin hid an amused smirk.

"What's so funny!" groaned the petite girl, her face turning a bright -- almost radioactive -- tomato shade.

Kaoru could not help but smile rather foolishly much like she had often did when enjoying some time with Kenshin. It felt good to have Misao around, even if it was just for a short while.

"Though…" uttered the braided girl, her face turning more thoughtful as if remembering a detail. "From what I could see, the jury looks like its more on the other side."

The redheaded teacher nodded. "I could see that too..." He murmured.

Kaoru frowned. This was not really a positive sight, even though it wasn't actually a dramatic one either. It was probably still early in session and Aoshi had the time to turn the tables… did he not?

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Afterwards, Kaoru and Kenshin found a waiting room down the hall. There were vending machines and percolators offering different coffee flavours for a few yens the cup pulled in a line against one of the walls. Couches and plush armchairs were left to accommodate the public as well as small tables and piles of out-dated magazines. In a corner, a mass of old, worn toys and half-torn color books with an equally mutilated lot of drawing pencils was at the disposition of kids to allege their wait. Kenshin wondered idly who would bring children in a Justice Hall of all places. That is, if they had nothing to do in a Justice Hall.

Kaoru had continued her lecture, sitting beside her lover, her head pillowed against his shoulder. He was shifting through some papers he had picked up earlier and would sometimes play with her long black strands, mesmerized by the silky touch of them until she turned limp against him, her book slipping slightly down her fingers. The young woman had dozed off nearly an hour ago when Sanosuke stormed into the waiting area.

"The bastards…!" He yelled.

"Sano…" Kenshin pleaded, pointing a finger to Kaoru's sleeping form.

Sanosuke frowned. "What a shamelessly cute display…" He groaned, still slightly disapproving of his friend's relationship.

"She's tired." The red headed said regarding the tall man with a look of finality, yet his words softly spoken as to not awaken the sleeping girl.

"You have no shame…" muttered the spiky-headed man.

"Judging by your shouts, things are not turning the way they should in there?" deduced the teacher eager to change the subject at the first given opportunity.

"Those mother fuckers…" He seethed through gritted teeth. "Not only do they eye me all the time as if I had some kind of third arm growing their," he complained pointing at his forehead, "buy they also managed to make Yahiko say that he's better where he is!"

"Don't worry so much. Mr. Shinomori must have seen that coming."

"Humph…" the brunette snorted. "I admit the ice-cube has some wit but…"

"Have a little more faith Sano. Your lawyer is a very capable man, that he is."

"It's just…" He sighed, shoulder slopping and anger shifting to depression. "I don't think that'll be enough." Sanosuke slouched down like a boneless heap on the armchair in front Kenshin.

"Sano… that doesn't sounds like you."

He laughed bitterly. "They found everythin' Kenshin… every little sordid detail. There's no way they'll give him back to me, you know… At least they'll probably leave him to your godfather… if that's any consolation at all."

"Sometimes you say the strangest things, that you do…" Teased Kenshin, trying to lift his friend's moral.

"It'll be your turn at the witness bar pretty soon, won't it?" He asked, chocolate brown eyes scrutinising the left part of his best friend's face. "It might get you into some trouble."

Kenshin shook his head. "There shouldn't be any traces left of my contribution in the matter…" He muttered, eyes closed and worry spreading over his face.

Sano snarled in irritation. "I'm the unlucky one who had to take the blame."

"I'll never thank you enough for the diversion…" whispered the teacher, his expression had turned forlorn. "If it weren't for you…"

Sanosuke smiled roughly. "That's what pal's for, man." He said almost too jovially. "I got three years… you'd've gotten imprisoned for life! What's it compared to that?"

The redhead sighed. "Maybe I should've gotten it and save us all a lot of trouble… I…" His purple eyes turned distant and took that old emotionless tone that he once had, a long time ago.

"Hey." Sano murmured, trying to gain his friend's attention. "Don't worry about it, in a way you're the one who got the worse of it all."

Crimson strands hid the depth of his amethysts pools. Kenshin nodded, not daring to stare his best friend in the eye. There was still a lot of guilt that mutilated his conscience. Back then, he witnessed the worse just as much as he caused it. Sanosuke was not even aware of half of his deeds. Sometimes the redhead wondered if living with Tomoe, that loveless routine, was some sort of well deserved punishment. Was it not the reason why he hesitated all those years…? Ten long years of silent anguish hidden behind a smiling mask.

"I wonder…" he murmured.

"Wonder what?"

Kenshin jumped, he had not been aware of speaking his thoughts aloud. To hide his thoughts, he turned his smiling purple eyes toward his friend. "It's nothing, that it is."

His friend shrugged, not fooled but understanding. Then, Sanosuke noticed the files in Kenshin's hand and arched a curious eyebrow.

"What are those?" He asked.

The redheaded teacher looked up then down at his hands. "They are divorce formularies."

Sano blinked. "You're really serious about this."

Kenshin did not look at him but nodded. "I don't think… It would be fair to either of them if I remained married."

Sanosuke leaned back into the armchair an oddly thoughtful expression on his face. "I guess that no matter what happens here… stuff will never be the same."

The teacher looked at Kaoru's slipping face, a sorrowful expression sobering the color of his eyes.

"You really do say the strangest things Sano, that you do…"

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Kaoru stood in front of the courtroom where the trail was taking place. The large wooden doors were shut tight and no sound escaped its barrier. Kenshin had walked in thirty minutes ago. He asked if she would want to come inside instead of waiting outside but she declined. There had been, for only a moment, a hint of apprehension in his eyes and she deduced that things in the trial could be said that he was still uncomfortable to tell her. The young woman understood that all too well. After all, she told him so little… everyone knew so little.

It did not take long for Misao to emerge once more looking drained and thoroughly bored. Barely five minutes after Kenshin walked in, the green-eyed girl was stepping out, stiffing a yawn and rubbing her right eye with the palm of a hand. Now she was sneaking around, jiggling every handle, pushing every door and peering into every hole. Kaoru turned her attention back to her best friend and chuckled.

"Finding anything worthy of investigation?" She asked.

Misao's head turned to her, her hands still gripped a doorknob. "Nothing besides locked doors and broom closets, those people don't know how to entertain." She said.

Kaoru laughed. "It's a Justice Hall after all. It's bound to be boring, no?"

The small girl giggled. "'Course, why d'you think Jiya likes it so much."

Misao walked back to the large wooden door to stand beside her friend. Her face took a more thoughtful quality as she closed in. Once she stopped, she bore her gaze into Kaoru's back.

"I've been wondering…"

Kaoru froze then turned slowly to face her. "Wondering what?" She asked although she really was not that cautious to know.

Misao toyed with her fingers, her stare sliding to the marble floor. "About… You're teacher…"

Kaoru turned pale then took a deep breath and heaved a sigh. "Just ask, Misao."

"Are you…" She searched for her word, finding nothing better she muttered hastily. "Having something going on…"

Kaoru arched an eyebrow. "Something going on?"

Misao groaned. "You know what I mean." and crossed her arms over her chest.

The blue-eyed girl turned her back to the door and slid down into a sitting position then turned her head back in her friend's direction. "We are…"

Misao blinked, was that an answer? Then Kaoru spoke once more. "Yes, as corny as it may sound." She whispered. "I'm in love."

The petite girl's expression mixed with friendly compassion and mild worry. Truthfully, Misao did not know how to react so she sat beside her friend, her hands reaching to the sole of her shoes.

"Is it like with Sou-chan?"

Kaoru shook her head lightly. Of course it was nothing like what she had once shared with the blue-eyed boy. With him, from the beginning they both knew it would not last forever. A short-lived crush or maybe something like summer love, unless it had started in the middle of January. It ended quite the same way it had started. One day, they just realised it was over and remained good friends. Smiling softly, Kaoru compared it to a pleasant walk in the park that ended with a just as pleasant goodbye. No bittersweet memories just found souvenirs.

"It's not a little walk in the park." Kaoru said.

"You mean it's not easy?" asked Misao, misunderstanding her friend's statement.

Kaoru cocked her head to the side. "There's a little bit of that too."

Misao's expression turned consoling once again. "Yeah… I know what one sided love is like..."

Kaoru's blue eyes darkened with sorrow for her best friend as well as for herself for what she was about to confess. "It's…" That's when she realised how hard it would be to tell her aunts this. She was stuttering when about to reveal the secret to her best friend. "Misao…" She murmured, "it's not one sided…"

The green-eyed girl remained silent for an agonizingly long moment. Kaoru feared the worse, reproaches, accusations, and the most horrible, their friendship ruined and impossible to repair. But Misao did nothing of that.

"I see…" She murmured, her green eyes meeting Kaoru's sideway. "Teacher and married…"

Kaoru swallowed and nodded.

"Do you think Tae and Sae know somethin'?"

"I think they are suspecting something, but to what degree I really don't know."

Misao snickered. "Knowing Sae, she must be jumping right to the wrong conclusions."

To that sentence, Kaoru did her best not to react too much or not enough and simply chortled. Of course, the rancid taste of guilt was swarming up her throat but she did not think she could reveal that much of her private life. Truth be told, Kaoru was still, after all, a seventeen-years-old, soon to be eighteen, but a teenager none the less and, in the end, still shy of any sexually related subject. Just remembering the things they did together was enough to make her flush furiously. Misao did not need to know.

"He's… ok with you, right? Doesn't force you to do anything, right?"

Kaoru blushed remembering how many times Kenshin pleaded for her to tell him to stop and how lovingly gentle he always was.

She smiled. "He's very lovely and considerate, I think it's a deep part of his personality and it's… very sweet." She confessed.

"And… about his wife."

Kaoru shook her head once again. "I'm not entirely sure but the story is complicated."

Misao nodded. "As long as you don't play substitute…"

The raven-haired girl looked at her friend seriously. "I'm not… I know I could tell."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

The trial lasted longer then predicted. It coursed through the afternoon until early in the evening when the jury retired to deliberate and the courtroom was cleared. The judgement would be given the next morning. It was with grimed faces and low optimism that the group walked into the Shirobeko.

Sanosuke was surprisingly silent. He observed from his sitting place the rest of the action without necessarily taking part in nothing much besides scolding Yahiko. The boy just discovered how easily he could set off that little bomb that they called Misao and spent most of the time when his mouth was not full of food to argue and bicker, teasing Kaoru in the meantime.

"I'll get you back for that stupid ball, little twerp." She warned halfway through the dinner.

"I should've aimed better, that way maybe I've corrected that ugly face of yours, old hag!" spitted the ten-years-old boy.

Kaoru gritted her teeth. "Old… OLD HAG?"

Kenshin hid a smile behind his hand and turned his attention toward the kid. "Now Yahiko, that wasn't nice, that it was not." He chastised.

"Yeah," Added Sano with a smug grin, suddenly out of his silent torpor. "Some truths are not good to tell, ye know."

"TRUTH!" raged the black-haired girl. She sent a murderous glare toward the tall man and gripped something concealed under that table. "So it's true, you say… I'm ugly?"

Misao smirked and slowly slipped under the table to take cover. Aoshi took a small sip of his drink to hide a smile behind the cup and watched Tae walk up to their table from the corner of his eyes. He idly pitied human stupidity and watched with hidden appreciation as Kaoru retrieved a shinai from God knew where and proceeded to '_whack the wicked_', to use her own terms.

A leg twitching, the rest of his body limp, Kaoru's right foot on Sanosuke's prone and mutilated figure, the man was defeated. The young woman, however, stood proud and tall over him such as a victorious Valkiry -- or a little tomboy who just conquered a new victim. Yahiko's eyes were wide as sake cups and Hiko could not help but stifle a laugh. He gave his godchild a side glace that spoke loud of his thoughts. Kenshin just watched, astonished yet again by the amount of energy his lovely, and usually so soft, Kaoru could produce.

"Maa, Maa… Miss Kaoru, must you maim him so hard?" He asked and received a grimace for all answer.

"Kaoru! Don't beat my costumers down!" warned Tae eyeing her niece as she would a young child with a mildly bad conduct.

"That's right Kaoru," continued Aoshi, "He still has to hear the judgement tomorrow."

"I think you just whammed the pea out of his head." added Misao as she slid back on her chair now that the storm was over.

She leaned over the table to get a glimpse of Sanosuke, his eyes were swirling and his abused nervous system still caused his fingers and legs to twitch uncontrollably.

"Definitely got the pea whammed out." confirmed the green-eyed girl with a large grin.

Apparently, thought Kenshin, this was a part of Kaoru's personality that many knew of and, most importantly, were used to. He knew after witnessing the girl struggle with a pile of chairs and desks as well as when she kicked Sano in the face that the girl possessed a boiling temper. It was, to his point of view, utterly adorable, and, unable to contain it any longer, the teacher started to laugh whole-heartedly.

This caused a surprising reaction from Yahiko, Sano and Hiko. The three turned their face in the redhead's direction, the boy's brown eyes twice their normal size, Sanosuke, skull sporting a tower of angry-looking lumps, blinked three times as he sat up to peer at his friend and the tall kendo master smirked. Everyone else was laughing but those three were surprised, speechless and amused.

"You know, I've been missin' that kinda wacky stuff you always pull." Snickered Misao, a grin so wide on her face many feared it would tear her cheeks apart, but joy shown bright in the girl's green eyes.

Kaoru mocked shock with a wink, stepped off her most recent victim, and returned to her place. "Who're you calling crazy?" She teased, tapping her shinai on the shoulder she had rested it on.

Misao waved her hands in front of her defensively, "Not me!"

"You wretched girl." gritted Sanosuke once he came over the shock of his best friend's laughter. "You're a monster that should be kept behind iron and steel." Even though his propos were venomous, there was a tolerating smirk on his lips. She had made Kenshin laugh, really laugh, for the first time in nearly ten years. He was thankful enough not to press the matter, even if it cost him a lump the size of _Fuji-san_.

"Yeah, such an ugly monster shouldn't be out in the open." added Yahiko.

The shinai slammed on the table, right in front of the boy's rice bowl, somehow missing all the dishes and food. Yahiko swallowed hard.

"You said something, squirt?" She asked, quirking an eyebrow provocatively.

"Ah…" stuttered the kid.

"That's enough Kaoru, you're going to scare the daylight out of him if you keep going." warned Tae taking a seat beside Aoshi. "Besides it's not giving us a good image." Her tone was teasing but the girl calmed down anyway.

"Mr. Himura told me earlier that the trial was long." Said Tae now that her niece had gotten rid of her shinai -- God only knew how.

The dark man nodded. "It was not very well appreciated that my client hid a large part of his past to the child agency and court. It was hard to convince the jury that it was only for the child's sake."

Hearing that, Sanosuke sulked and grunt in irritation. "It was stupid."

"Of course." agreed Hiko.

Kenshin nodded.

Kaoru observed in silence, questions rising to her mind and only judgement and understanding kept her from asking. Maybe someday Kenshin would tell her the whole story. She was a patient person, she could wait. Besides, there were things she, too, was not ready to tell.

"Do you think we won?" Asked Yahiko, still feeling bad for the answers he gave the court.

"We'll see tomorrow." was Aoshi's answer.

"What I don't understand." murmured Kaoru after a long minute of silent reflection. "Why would someone fight over such a stupid little whinny-brat!"

Yahiko's reaction was instantaneous. "Who do you call _little_, old _hag_."

"She's not ugly, shrimp." shouted Misao in her friend's defence.

"I'm not small, stupid _weasel_."

"I'm not a WEASEL!" barked Misao.

Sano snickered, feeling very thankful to Kaoru for the distraction. "Your nose seems to finds its way into everyone's business… that sounds a lot like a _weasel_, doesn't it?" That question was for Yahiko but the man's eyes were on the braided girl.

"Shut up rooster head!"

"_Rooster_?"

Yahiko burst into laughter, half-eaten pieces of rice spluttering out of his mouth but it was Hiko's reaction that got the rest of them laughing -- besides the irritated, red-faced Sanosuke.

"So you noticed…"

And that's when Misao did a big mistake. Holding a quivering stomach from too much laughs, the rest of her hilarity still permeating her voice, she turned to Kaoru with a huge grin.

"With wackos like them, no wonder you're coming back."

Kaoru froze, Kenshin blinked and Tae's eyes turned to her niece, clearly displeased. Aoshi stared at the girls with clear disapproval causing the blue-eyed girl to avoid all gazes.

"Kaoru… When did you decide that…?"

"I…" muttered the girl, playing with her fingers, purposefully keeping her eyes hidden from all.

"Kaoru… things are…" Started Aoshi but was interrupted by Tae.

"It's not safe and you know it."

Kenshin stole a glace at his lover. She was fidgeting under the scrutinizing glances of her family and friends as well as that of almost complete strangers. He could not begin to grasp what was going on or what was the meaning of the half-warning phrases of both the lawyer and the restaurateur, however he could tell of its importance and deduce a truth that shocked him. There was more than one reason why Kaoru was in Kyoto and the most important of them was not because her aunts lived here.

"Um…" stammered Misao, feeling just as bad as her friend did, if not worse.

The teacher could tell from his point of view that Kaoru was tensing. Stress had started to strain her shoulder muscles. She shook her head and took a deep breath.

"I want to continue my studies there." She explained.

"It's too early to decide on that matter for now… and it's expensive." said the girl's guardian.

"I know but…"

"And there are good colleges here too, you know."

Those who knew the girl well looked at her with concerned and sympathizing eyes while the rest simply stared and wondered just what was going on. For once, Yahiko knew not to utter a word and simply watched, distracting himself with the remains on his plate. Sanosuke tried to get some answers by looking at an equally confused Kenshin. The question was clear; what happened in Tokyo?

"I know," cried Kaoru her voice wavered subtly under heavy emotion. "But can't I just hope things will be alright by then?"

"Kaoru…" Started Tae, but the girl would not let her finish.

She slammed her palms against the table and rose to her feet to look at her tutor, her gaze hard and angry. "I want to return to my hometown, study where I always wanted to and live where I should live. Is _THAT A CRIME_?"

The woman looked at her niece with sorrowful eyes unable to say anything that could comfort the girl. Aoshi and Misao also had sombre faces. Yahiko had even stopped stuffing his face. Kaoru rarely raised her tone, unless it was to shout playful insults. Now her tone was accompanied by pain and a distress no one seemed to understand or knew how to soften. The girl's blue eyes regarded her aunt with a glint of anger as well as sorrow and she shook her head.

"You can't decide everything for me." She said and walked out of the restaurant.

Tae arose to follow but Kenshin stopped her by standing up as well.

"I'll talk to her… if you let me, that is." He said.

The woman did not answer right away. She stole a glance toward Aoshi that, somehow, trailed toward Hiko who simply shrugged. Either she understood the meaning of the gesture or accepted to trust the redhead for this once. She nodded and Kenshin was gone.

"I'm getting too old to take care of a teenager…" muttered the woman as she sat back in her chair, fingers squeezing her pulsing temples.

As the rest of the dinning companion returned to their food, conversations picked up where they left, although tamed and uncomfortable. Tae's attention turned to Hiko who seemed to be smiling quite contently. She arched a questioning eyebrow and he shrugged.

"Those two are getting along fairly well, don't you think?" He asked her.

The woman frowned. "A little bit too well…"

"It's not necessarily a bad thing, do you think?" He continued as if having a rather trivial conversation. He sipped his sake without much of a care.

"It leaves me uneasy." She admitted with a sigh.

"The idiot is a fool." Hiko grinned behind his cup.

"So is my little Kaoru…"

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

When Kenshin found sitting her beside an old and dented trashcan -- the dents were unmistakably her doing -- in the back alley of the restaurant, Kaoru was calm or at least, she appeared to be. Her back was against the brick wall of an adjacent building, arms warped around her legs, eyes staring into space, literally. Her face was twisted upward to gaze at the few stars there was. He did not say anything. There was no need to and if there was, he would not know what to speak of. He simply stood there, under the lamp above the employee's entry, watching her watching everything else but him.

Their silence was comfortable. Kenshin's presence was soothing, levering the heavy heap of stress, anger and frustration that had settled over her shoulders. After a moment, the teacher racked his fingers through the loose strands of his crimson mane before he soothed an ach at his nape and shifted balance from one foot to another. There was nothing he could say to her but there was a lot he wanted to ask and did not. Suddenly, he understood how Kaoru must feel, pulled awkwardly into the undertow of his past and never asking why or how.

Therefore, he stood there, his eyes never sailing far from her sullen from. He wanted to hold her in his arms, embrace her strongly and sooth all ach from her heart but he also wanted her to make the first move, to openly demand he hold her close and strong. Should he give into his protective nature, Kenshin would surely ask questions his lover was not ready to answer. One minute lapsed, then two, and three and silence reigned mighty. This steered worries and concern from the man. Five minutes and she murmured, finally.

"Sorry for being childish…"

"I don't think you were."

He saw a faint smile on her lips though her eyes were shield in darkness. "Thank you, but it was childish."

He grinned without mirth. "Maybe a little…"

Kaoru chortled. "I want to be even more childish…" She confessed.

"How much?"

She looked up and revealed water rimmed eyes, heavy and weary. "Can I spend the night at your place?"

He was startled for a moment and had to blink a few times before answered. "I don't think it's a really good idea, that I don't."

She gave him a sad, almost pitiful smile. She looked adorable in a broken sort of way… he did not like that look. "I just… don't feel like going home after… what I did." And her blue eyes turned to watch a crack in the concrete by her left foot.

"I don't think neither of your aunts would agree to that." He said.

The young woman shook her head slowly, dark silken hair waving in the hair, some finer strands caught by the callous of the bricks behind her back. "I know… I don't want them to know where I go."

"Kaoru…"

"I said I wanted to be even more childish, Kenshin." But the way she talked sounded painfully adult in its reasoning. "I need… to be comforted…"

He strode the few steps that separated them and squatted in front of her, eyes searching for hers. His hands reached for her forehead and parted the lose strands to tuck them behind each of her ears. His thumps caressed her cheeks softly as he peered into her painfully melancholic eyes. She looked fragile and lost and his desire to hold her close to his chest arose, urging, but he ignored. Instead, he brushed the pad of his fingers over the silken smoothness of her facial skin, tracing lazy circles around her mouth, cheeks and lids. Their eyes met and locked, trying to read each other's mind but not quite grasping what swarmed inside the other's head.

"It's not a good idea for you to spend the night with me." He said, once more.

Her eyes darted away from his once more and Kaoru worried her lower lips and took a deep breath. "Kenshin…" She whispered, trying for the last time. "I want to be with you tonight…" She pushed a finger against his lips, silencing his retort before it even touched his tongue. "Hear me out please." She begged, her gaze finally returning to his, just as sad and weary, but with a hint of firmness. He nodded and she continued. "I… I want to be with you because… with you I… things are easier." She admitted.

"I'm not sure I understand, that I'm not…"

Kaoru sighed and leaned into his touch with a soft smile but the tinge of bitterness that marred her expression did not completely disappear. "You give me comfort… that's all I want tonight."

He was pensive for a moment. "And you don't want to tell your aunts where you are going?" She nodded. "You're aware they might call me?" Again, she acquiesced with a quivering light of hope softly illuminated her otherwise dark stare. "We'll be in trouble…" He murmured.

"I can cope with that." She affirmed.

He sighed heavily. "_Shishou_'s supposed to pay the bill anyway…"

Her expression turned happier, though the traces of gloom not quite gone yet. He reached for her hand and helped the girl to her feet before he gave into his earlier desire and pulled her into his arms, cradling her slender form against his chest. Kenshin brushed his lips to her earlobe and slid a hand through her dark tresses.

"Kenshin…" She whispered.

Her mouth had traced the words on his shoulder and neck.

"Let's go…" He murmured.

Kaoru rested her head on his shoulder throughout the silent ride to Kenshin's apartment. A silence that persisted until the couple reached the teacher's lobby, broken only by the girl's askance for water and permission to turn the on the television. Both requests granted, Kaoru lied on the couch and flipped through channels, waiting for her lover to join her.

When he walked into the living room, Kaoru had finally settled for an old American sitcom that was already half way through. He nudged her aside, giving the girl he glass of water, which she downed in three long swallows, before she pillowed her head on his laps. Lazily, Kenshin trailed his fingers through her long, soft hair and undid the ribbon that kept them together at some point.

"If…" she started hesitantly, "If I can return to Tokyo, are you still willing to come along?"

He peered down at her face so comfortably rested on his things. "Somehow, I think your aunts will have a lot to say into that matter." He said after a long moment of reflection.

Her expression soured and she faced away from him. "I don't like that…"

He frowned. "Kaoru… I don't think it's wise to hide this from them, that it's not." He said, gently nudging the stray locks from her face.

She sighed heavily. "I know…" One of her finger started to draw form small circles over his knee. "But… I don't think they can understand it for the moment."

"I think you're wrong."

"I'm scared for you." She confessed. "What if they go all crazy… or learn that we've been…" She blushed and buried her face in his laps. "I don't want to be away from you." Her words were muffled. It was almost funny how it sounded, like a childish whine.

He bent and kissed her forehead. "Only if you keep waiting. The sooner they get used to it, the better, no?"

"What about school?"

Kenshin frowned. "You think we need to tell the student body?" His tone was teasing, but there was a tinge of worry in there as well.

She sprang up and her head almost collided with his chin. "I never said that!"

He grinned and smoothed her cheek. "No matter what, we'll have to be careful."

She nodded but made a cute pout. "You really want me to tell my aunts?"

"Only if you're ready… though better tell them then them figuring it out of their own, no?"

Again, she nodded, albeit reluctantly. "Can't it wait until the end of term?"

He laughed softly and helped the girl settle back into her previous position. He combed his roughened fingers through her hair.

"Whenever you're ready, Kaoru."

She smiled softly and yawned.

"Kaoru?" He asked.

"Um?"

"Do you have trouble sleeping?"

She stiffened for barely a moment. "What do you mean?"

"You fell asleep this afternoon, and I can see the dark under your eyes."

"There's been a lot on my mind." She murmured before she shifted slightly to gain more comfort.

He caressed her back with the tip of his fingers, his eyes watching the light of the television shift in colors and intensity across her pale skin. "I have ears, that I do." He suggested, gently.

Her face turned on his laps and her hand reached up to touch the cruciform mark on his left cheek, fingers tracing the long, harsh lines. "I have ears too."

He smiled sympathetically. "Fair…"

He did not elaborate any further when the ring tone of Kenshin's telephone echoed through the living room. Blue eyes widened and a little bit of fear smudged their lovely color. They both knew who was on the other side of the line and Kaoru was all but comfortable with that fact.

"Are you going to lie?" She asked.

"Do you want me to?"

She shook her head, but with a slight hesitation. Kenshin got up and picked up the line.

"Himura…" He said, then his eyes widened. "Sano?"

Kaoru looked up, equally surprised.

"Those crazy chicks are awfully worried, man." said the man on the other side. "I s'pose the Missy's at your place."

"She is." He said with a nod he knew was unnecessary.

"I'm not… interrupting anything, am I?" The uncomfortable tone of his voice caused the redhead to laugh and Kaoru to stare at him questioningly.

"No, we were just talking."

"Ah… pillow talk, eh?" He teased, although, if Kenshin had seen him, he was nowhere nearly looking as careless as he sounded. There was stuff he really did not want to know about his best friend's love life.

"Nothing like that, I assure you."

Sano heaved a slight sighed, the sound caused displeasing distortion in the phone's speaker. "I told the witches that you '_probably_' took her to a walk so the Missy could cool off. I'm not sure they swallowed it though."

"Those women are awfully well witted." Kenshin said taking a sidelong glance toward the girl on his couch. "We thought it was them calling right now."

"Better talk Missy into calling them or else there's going to be blood spilling." Sano half joked, half warned.

"Anything else?"

"Yeah." And there was a laughing tone. "Hiko left me a gift for you, come pick it up tomorrow."

"Gift?" Wondered Kenshin aloud. "What kind?"

On the other side of the receiver, Sanosuke shook the warped box in his hands. "From the sound of it it's either candies or condoms."

Kenshin's face turned bright red. "The… amn…unning… tard…" He stuttered the words struggled in his shock-tightened throat, teeth gritted.

Hiko knew… or Hiko thought he knew… But what Hiko thought he knew was actually the truth and he did not need to know that. Kenshin's shoulder fell slightly, almost mocking himself. He had been trying to coax Kaoru into telling her aunts, but truthfully, he was no better then her. He was not only reluctant to tell his godfather about the new developments in his love-life. He was scared beyond all reason. For sure, the young teacher was going to get a beating like he had not in a long, long time.

"You're in hot waters, man." Teased Sano completely pleased with himself. "I'll call you tomorrow to tell you the details…" Then he sighed. "Pray for me man… though I doubt God's ever going to listen to you anymore." He joked and hung up before Kenshin could even utter a word.

Kaoru was looking at him, sited on her hunches, her eyes wide and curious.

"What was that all about? Why you so red?"

Kenshin's blush deepened. "A… Apparently, _Shishou_ had a gift for me."

The girl frowned. "That's what got you all worked up?" She teased.

"It's either candies or… condoms."

Surprise stretched the girl's features cutely, her mouth slightly agape as she stared at her lover, befuddled. "C… condoms?"

He nodded. "Also… Sano told your aunts that we went for a walk so you could cool down a little. I suggest you call them."

She frowned again, not pleased at all. "Give me one good reason." She said stubbornly.

"I'll be right by your side." He said, picking the receiver up and offering it to her.

"Alright…" She gave in and nearly snatched the object out of his hands when she reached him. "But only because it's you."

He brushed his knuckles tenderly to the side of her face. "Thank you so much, lovely."

She blushed under his teasing glance and dialled her residence's number.

"Sekihara residence." It was Tae.

"Aunt Tae…" murmured Kaoru, still looking into Kenshin's lavender eyes.

"Kaoru? Where have you been? You got us awfully worried young lady… Where are you?"

Kaoru flinched. "I needed time to think a little…"

"With Mr. Himura?"

The girl did not like the accusation in the woman's voice. "I wanted to talk with someone who had nothing to do with it."

"Does he know?" She sounded worried.

Kaoru shook her head, then remembered she was talking to the phone and could not be seen. "No."

"When are you coming back home?"

"Tomorrow."

"Kaoru." Tae warned.

"I don't want to be home for the moment… I wouldn't feel… I just…"

"Kaoru… you know we love you."

"I just need the time for myself…"

"Sleeping at your teacher's house is not exactly being with yourself."

How she hated that practical sense of the woman. "Aunt Tae, please understand…"

"Let me speak to him." She demanded.

Kaoru was silent for a moment and turned her gaze back to Kenshin's, her expression unpleasantly surprised. "Speak to Kenshin?"

"There's someone else?" Tae was not as hasty to make conclusions as was her sister, but she was good at pretending to be.

Her niece stammered. "N… no, just him and I." And that's when it hit her.

Kaoru had fallen right into the trap.

"His wife's not home?"

Kaoru wanted to cry, to shout, to yell, to roar. Damn it! She had been framed! Unable to face talking to the woman any longer, she passed the receiver to her lover, her gaze sliding with surprising haste to the floor.

Kenshin stared at the girl for a few seconds before turning his attention to the receiver in his hands. "Hello?"

"Mr. Himura?"

"Good evening Miss Sekihara." He greeted politely.

"Save it. I hope you are aware of what you are doing, sir."

He cringed. "Without a doubt, that I am."

Kaoru shifted her weight from one foot to the other, twisting her fingers as fear and trepidation torn through her. Kenshin took her hand in his to reassure her when, in fact, he was just as tensed as she was.

"I could call the police and tell them you are keeping a run-away teenage girl in your house. You are aware of that?" continued the woman, her tone firm and unwavering.

"That is for you to decide, however, I am not keeping her by force, that I'm not."

"Surely you don't. Kaoru has more spunk then that."

This cause Kenshin to chuckled lightly, agreeing silently. "She wishes to spend the night here."

"So she told me."

"Do you have any objections?" He asked.

"Many, but what am I to say in the matter, I am merely her guardian, Mr. Himura."

"If you wish of me to bring her back home…"

Hearing that, Kaoru shook her head vehemently and sized him by the arm forcefully, muttering no and please. He wanted her to stay as much as she did, however, he did not wish any trouble with the twins either.

"I believe she doesn't wish to be here tonight. I'll leave it as this if you promise me one thing."

Kenshin swallowed. "You have my words."

"I'm rather conservative, Mr. Himura. Don't do anything I would not." There was a dangerous warning tone in the woman's voice.

"I gave you my words…" He answered. "Do you wish to speak to her again?"

"Yes please."

The receiver was exchanged once more.

"Tomorrow, you will have a lot of explaining to do, young lady."

"Yes…" She murmured.

"Be home at 9 am, sharp."

"Yes…"

The young woman hung up, feeling numb and lost. Kaoru turned to her teacher, her bottom lip quivering, all she could do was warp her arms around him and hug his body with enough strength not to chock him. Leaning into her, he returned the gesture and brushed his lips across her temple soothingly.

"She's not happy…" spoke the girl into his neck.

He laughed roughly. "I could hear that… that I could."

"What did she make you promise?" She wondered.

"This one is not supposed to do anything Miss Tae would not, the he is not." He said, half-humorous, half-disappointed.

She sighed. "Why don't we watch a movie?"

He chuckled and tightened his hold. "It's a good idea, that it is."

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**_Eden's Reviewers Corner:_**

**Sims are awsome**: I love to write about Misao and Sano, they get pretty interesting together. I hope their interaction in this chapter was to your liking as well.

**Luna987**: You'll know what's up with Yahiko next chapter… sorry to make you wait.

**SeaBreeze**: I don't know if you read the little message I wrote for you in the bonus chapter but I'll say it again here. The words on the promo have everything and nothing to do with the story. I think that if you strain your eyes enough, maybe you'll read and recognize them. I'm glad that my little invention for Misao's expressions are making you laugh. That girl is a great comic relief. And, as you predicted, things are about the get rather messy and I have a strange conception of happiness… Just wait and see, there's a lot that still needs to be taken care of.

**Royal blueKitsune**: Yeah… I'm a strange one. I write mushy stuff but I'm not much into it if it has nothing to do with manga… Romance novels are, usually, rather boring and I'm wondering why the heck I'm writing romance. Trail, divorce and complicated relationship is only a resulting part of all the other stuff that still remains unanswered. Keep reading, it's gonna get even better… or worse.

**DragonBlade666**: I'm glad it made you laugh, it'll help the soul of my poor keyboard… I'm glad the thought of a sequel excites you. I'll let time tell you if Kenshin tells Tomoe or not. Looking forward to hear more of you.

**Guardian forever**: Time does fly… School again in two days… sigh. I'm not sure if I'm happy with it or totally plumped down… It's good to know that I did not give away too much or not enough. I'm happy you liked the last chapter and am just as excited as anyone else about writing a sequel. Many were very happy that Kenshin was talking about getting a divorce but do you think things are really going to be that easy? I'm evil… EVIL! (AS for the beta work… are you ready to take a big, big job cause it's starting pretty soon. Send me an e-mail, there are things I need to ask you)

**Hikaru1617**: It's alright to forget. I forget too many things. New reviewers are always welcome.. I actually encourage it. Review, review, review (shut up Karyta…) --grin-- Scandalous? I like the sound of that… Thanks for taking the time to review.

**Aya the White Dragon**: Haven't heard of you for ages! Chapter 5.. .that's nearly a year ago… Time really DOES fly. I'm happy to see that you still enjoy the story after so long. It must have been great to read so many chapter in a row without having to wait… though you kind of had to wait anyway… anyway. Welcome back and I hope to see more of your kind words in the future. You're right, the world needs a lot of fluff as it is… lots of love and fluff for everybody!

**Kat P**: For your question, my view on 'Kenshin's alter ego' is based mostly on the manga. I've gone over, with some people, of my opinion over the eye-color changing thing. If you're curious of my theory, send me an e-mail (that's ekaryta at hotmail) and I'll be more than happy share opinions with you. Thank you for reading and reviewing.

**Soniya Himoura**: Well… you're not the only one who's oldschool… Tae seems to be as well. I have to remind you, though, that my primary idea with this story was to mix as many taboos as possible and that the possibility for Kenshin to go to jail because of his relationship always played a relative part in the development of the story. Add to it all that the man's married… Anyway, I hope you enjoy it all even though some subjects are a little… touchy.

**Reihoshido**: Thank you very much. I worry a lot about my storyline, which is rather confusing even to me. So it's appreciated to know that people like it. Thank you again for your kind words and review.

**_I wrote this chapter only a month ago and, to be honest, I don't recall being in any particular mood. Well… besides feeling over-energetic and more motivated than I actually ever been before… This chapter was meant to draw some sort of closure to the 'Trail' although we will only know the results of it next chapter. I must admit that I enjoy writing humour. I never wrote it before this story and, as I reread it, I realised how fun it was to do. Heh. There is still a lot to happen in this story before I finally admit that it's over, hehe. I hope that, so far, you are enjoying every little bits of it… Maybe I'm asking for too much. _**

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**_Thank you so much for reading and reviewing. _**

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**_Eden's Epitaph_**

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_Edited by Guardian Forever_


	18. More Bitter than Sweet

**Warnings: None.**

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**_Honeysuckles and Moonlight Shreds_**

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_By Eden's Epitaph_

Chapter 17: _More Bitter than Sweet_

_The mood seemed to change when she felt his hand glide softly down her side. It tickled her flesh but it was nothing more than a careful caring brush. He shifted his head, red hair spilling down each side of her ribcage. His purple eyes looked tired and darker than usual but still they shone, albeit faintly. He held her gaze with a serious intensity. The young woman frowned. Something was off and the loving playfulness they shared not a moment ago was gone._

_"Kaoru…" he murmured his other hand reaching up to pull back an obstinate lock of hair behind her ear. "We will be in a lot of trouble you know." He said._

_The girl closed her eyes and sighed. She knew exactly what he meant, but she also felt very reluctant to share what he wanted to know. He was not exactly transparent with her either and that particular point seemed to seal her lips. Not that the young woman had no faith in him, but he did not seem to have enough in her. When she opened her eyes, his face had moved to hover above hers. The young woman gave him a faint smile._

_"I know…" She said._

_He pressed his forehead to hers and sighed. "Why won't you tell me why…?"_

_So close to his beautiful eyes, their exotic color so akin to his soul, it was difficult for the girl to say anything. Lying was out of the picture, but telling the truth…Instead, she traced, again, the cross marks that slashed his left cheek with the pad of her index finger. _

_"Your secrets are dangerous, aren't they?" _

_The redheaded man pulled back, slightly, and frowned. "And yours?"_

_"Troublesome…"_

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Kaoru was staring at the building facing her apartment with a look that Kenshin could only describe as forlorn. She had remained silent through the whole car ride. Her chin rested in her left palm, her eyes were lost in a vague sea of thoughts that were reserved for her self only. He wished the young woman would tell him more of what was swarming through her mind. Her silence was killing him. It reminded him too much of his wife and the distress he never was able to save her from. He wished the girl would open herself more and tell him, not only of the happy moments of her past -- as she had frequently done so --, but also the troublesome ones.

More than anything, the young teacher wished his student and lover would tell him of the incidents that led her to Kyoto. Obviously, it was something either painful or very serious if the young woman had to run from her home city. It nagged at him, awakening his protective instinct. Was Kaoru in potential danger? If so, to what extend and, of course, why?

"What time is it?" She asked, still not sparing him a single look.

He glanced at the car's digital clock. "8:47"

The young woman sighed, pressed an anxious hand to her face and took a deep, calming breath. "I really don't want to face them…" She confessed.

Kenshin felt powerless. "I'm sure it won't be that bad, that I am."

She chuckled slightly. "Sorry."

The redhead blinked. "About what?"

"This," she said waving in every direction at the same time. "Complicating things when you really don't need anymore complications."

"Don't worry about it." It was the usual answer, but it did not satisfy Kaoru, and it was visible.

The girl frowned and turned to look at him.

"Whether you like it or not, Kenshin, I worry about it." She said.

"I'm sure it could be worse… that I am." He said, trying to sound confidant and apologizing which was a very odd combination of tones.

Kaoru smiled sadly, her spirit lifting, but barely.

"It could…" She acknowledged. "But for me… it's probably the most terrible moment I ever will have to go through… at least for now."

He leaned over and reached for her hand. "Are you scared?"

Slowly, she nodded. "I'm scared they won't let us see each other anymore."

"That's a possibility…," he muttered, however, his optimism seemed higher than hers did.

"You know, I don't exactly call that being '_positive_'…" She muttered, half-teasing.

He grinned and leaned further forward to plant a kiss on her exposed shoulder, his eyes never leaving hers. "You sounded so depressed, this one merely wished to follow the mood."

Kaoru arched an inquiring eyebrow a more substantial smile itching on her lips.

"Oh really."

He nodded. "Of course."

The young woman giggled softly almost condescendingly. "What's the worse possible scenario anyway?"

Kenshin seemed thoughtful for a moment.

"I get thrown in jail…"

She frowned, but it was playful.

"Which is really nothing compared to what I'll get for sleeping over, right?"

He chuckled. "Precisely."

The blue-eyed girl sighed. "There's really no way around it, is there?"

"No."

Again, she sighed and looked up. "I really, really don't want to go…"

With his right hand, Kenshin turned her face in his direction.

"I'll be right there with you." He assured.

Her expression softened, "Thanks."

Kaoru warped her arms round his neck and pulled him into a soft embrace. It seemed to the redheaded teacher that her gesture was meant to draw some courage and comfort so he returned it with as much love and care as possible. The young woman's lips touched his ear, her breath felt uneven and it sounded slightly raspy and nervous. Kenshin pushed her back slightly and kissed her lips, gently.

"Don't worry, Kaoru," he whispered close to her pretty face and brushed the tendrils that covered her forehead.

The girl gave him a weak smile, hugged him once more and got out of the car. She was about to walk into the building when she turned around, her eyes determined but her expression soft. Reaching for his hand, Kaoru interlaced their fingers, and peering into his lavender gaze, she squeezed his palm.

"I love you." She confessed in a low murmur.

"Me too." He kissed her one last time and nudged her shoulder forward. "Let's hurry."

Kaoru agreed silently, although reluctantly, and climbed the stairway to the second story. Standing in front of the door, she felt as if facing the Portals of Hell and feared, quite unreasonably, the demon that would greet them on the other side. The young woman felt the hand of her lover on her shoulder, the soft, warm pressure of his palm was soothing. She took a deep, anxious breath, twisted the knob and stepped inside.

Two pair of eyes turned in the couple's direction, their expressions not angry, but definitely not happy. Tae and Sae sat in the living room, the former in the armchair, the latter comfortably settled in the far corner of the couch, a plush cushion on her lap. Usually, either Sae or Tae would be at the restaurant on Thursdays morning. Apparently, today was the exception and Kaoru wondered if there was anyone there at all.

Kenshin stole a glance at his wristwatch. It just switched to nine in the morning and he heaved a sigh. At least they were not late, though he pondered if right on time was a good or a bad thing.

"Good morning Kaoru, Mr. Himura." Tae's voice was chill and the girl could not help but shiver some.

The woman either ignored or did not notice it for she did not comment on it. Instead, she invited them to take a seat. Kaoru sat near the armrest feeling rather small pinned under her aunt's unreadable stare. Kenshin, awkwardly, took the remaining place between his lover and Sae.

"I do hope you kept your promise, Mr. Himura."

"I'm a man of my words, Miss Sekihara, that I am."

"Forgive me for doubting." Her voice was akin to that of the snap of a whip. How strange a comparison for a woman who would otherwise sound so congenial.

"_Sessha's_ family values honour, that we do." Kenshin could only feel small under the woman's reprimanding glare. It was understandable but dear god he wished he did not have to defend his dignity, especially under the current situation.

"We only watched a movie and Kenshin slept on the couch, no matter my protests." Kaoru had decided that being honest was in the best of their interest for the moment.

Although choosing cautious words such as '_sleep_' instead of '_made love_' was required. As long as she did not say it out loud, Kaoru could always pretend, if only for her aunts, that nothing like that happened.

It was not convincing enough for Tae. "I take it that the wrongs have already been done."

Kaoru blushed and seemed about to stammer out some clumsy reply. Kenshin went to her rescue.

"I understand your worries, but understand that I would never do something that would cause Kaoru discomfort, that I would not." He too preferred a more sinuous path to honesty.

Sae chose that moment to intervene. "What exactly is going on?"

She did not sound clueless. She was anxious. Bent not to believe the awful assumptions her sister had spoken of the day prior.

"I'm…" The stain of blush would soon be permanent on the girl's cheeks and her eyes were glued to the floor.

Unconsciously maybe, Kaoru's hand sought Kenshin's. Her fingers curled around his in a mute declaration for the twins. She loved him, but their scrutinizing gazes and the clear disapproval the young woman could feel in their stares seemed to glue her lips together and knot her throat.

Both Tae and Sae watched the scene, one regretful the other dimly surprised.

The girl did not look up, the feel of their gazes was enough. She pinned her gaze on her knees and kept it there. Her toes curled under her foot and both her hands tightened. Was there a word to describe what was beyond nervousness? Anguish? It felt more like a mix of terror and fearsome apprehension.

"I love him…" she murmured, her voice barely audible.

Kenshin's eyes widened and so did those of Tae and Sae. The redheaded teacher turned his surprised gaze toward the young woman. She was nearly crushing his hand, her fingers clammy and boney-feeling. Most of what he could see of her face was near dead pale and her mouth had become a tight, thin line under her nose. She was clearly uneasy, and her confession seemed to have taken her more than half of her energy. Kaoru was nearly drained dry.

Sae was the first to actually react. She sprang from her seat and knelt in front of her niece, right hand covering the girl's left one that had remained on her knees.

"Kaoru… are you sure?" She whispered.

Kenshin could not help but frown slightly. He understood her reluctance. He was, after all, nearly 11 years older than Kaoru. It was not '_conventional_', it was not '_proper_' it _was not **wanted**_. But that did not mean he accepted that.

"I love him…" murmured the girl, once more, although her voice sounded slightly stronger, more confident.

"But he's…" protested Sae, still in denial.

"I love Kenshin!" Kaoru had lifted her gaze and her blue eyes stared straight into her aunt's shocked face.

No one dared to talk. Kaoru had shouted and the echo still rebounded on the apartment's walls. Surely, the neighbours must have heard, if not the complete block! Kenshin, although speechless, did not hesitate. He wrapped his arms around the now trembling girl. She felt so small and so fragile pressed against his chest. Like a wet and shivering kitten. He murmured his love in her ear, so gently and softly only she heard.

"I don't like this…," muttered Tae.

"It's not possible…," whispered Sae.

"… Don't want you to like this…," murmured Kaoru one of her hand had reached for Kenshin's forearm and clutched the fabric of his shirt.

"I would be surprised if you did," admitted the woman in the armchair with a small, regretful smile.

Sae sat back on her heels. She seemed completely defeated.

"I hoped it was only my imagination…" she confessed. The woman sounded lost in a daydream, somewhere between reality and fiction.

"It's going to get rather complicated. None of us wants attention." Tae said, ever the practical one, although her sudden coldness sounded vaguely off.

Kenshin agreed, but wondered if the woman was worried about him or something else. In truth, the young teacher would be rather surprised if Tae was being mindful of his precarious situation. Not for the first time, the redheaded man wished Kaoru would trust him more. Then again, was he not just as silent when his past was considered? Still, what was so terrible that not even the young woman, but the twins and the girl's childhood friend were so hushed over the subject. Surely, she had not killed anybody.

Did she?

"I don't think it's wise for the two of you to be together, alone." Continued Tae. "No more sleepovers." Her tone was one of finality and would not accept any protest in any possible or subtle forms.

Kaoru did not dare to look up for fear that her disappointment would show all too clearly on her all too red face.

"I understand…"

"Is there anyone else aware of this… situation?" Tae inquired.

"Sanosuke… And I wouldn't be surprised if Hiko also knew." Said Kenshin.

"They are trustworthy?"

The redheaded nodded. "Of course."

"You understand Mr. Himura that, not only is it dangerous for you, but it can draw unwanted attention to Kaoru should your relationship be discovered by the wrong people."

Sae sprang back to her feet. She looked nervous and edgy and could not stop shaking her head.

"This is bad, bad, bad…"

"Sae… please calm down." Demanded her sister, softly.

The woman stole a glance from her twin and sighed. "I'll make some tea…" and fled to the kitchen.

"Miss Sekihara… Why… I mean… I don't understand how it can also be dangerous for Kaoru…"

The three women froze. Kaoru shivered slightly in his arms, Sae almost dropped the kettle and Tae glared in his direction.

"I don't think it's important for you to know." She answered.

Kenshin frowned. "Forgive me, but I don't agree, that I don't."

"Mr. Himura. This matter is one of family. The less who knows, the better. Am I clear?"

Reluctantly, the young woman nodded. "I'm sorry Kenshin, but…"

It was unnerving but the young teacher would not press the matter. It was odd though. His life was filled with too many secrets, even his closets friends remained vaguely in the dark. He knew that many things were better kept silent, he was, after all, the best example. Still, it was unsettling not to know what marred his lover's past.

"Alright…" He finally said and got up. "If that is all, I have other things that need my attention." He gave Kaoru a soft look. The young woman was still very pale. "Will you be ok?"

She gave him a weak smile. "Don't worry too much."

He nodded and crossed to the door. He was pulling on his shoes when Tae joined him. She said nothing but followed Kenshin out of the apartment, down to the parking lot and to his car. With a sigh, the young teacher stood still by the rusty right door. He could feel the woman's hard stare on his shoulders, heavy and persistent.

"Is there something more, Miss Sekihara?"

"I want to apologize for my coldness, Mr. Himura."

"Really?" He was somewhat sceptical.

"Under… more natural circumstances, I don't think our… My reaction… would have been the same."

Kenshin shrugged, an enigmatic smile tugging his lips.

"But these are unusual ones, Miss Sekihara, and your worries could be well founded."

Tae arched an eyebrow, crossed her arms and bent her hip.

"Would it have something to do with that possibility of great trouble for you as well, Mr. Himura?"

He turned to face the woman, eyes hidden behind long red locks but expression otherwise sympathizing.

"Every one has something they don't want to share, that they do."

The teacher unlocked the door and was about to drop into the drive-seat when Tae's voice reached his ears.

"You are aware that after such a confession, I'm even more reluctant about a relationship between you and my niece?"

He looked up to meet her gaze, his eyes guarded by cheerfulness.

"_Sessha_ trusts your judgement, Miss Sekihara, that he does."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Sagara Sanosuke had been staring at the framed picture in his hands for nearly three hours now. Three hours since Aoshi called, three hours since his world finally completely capsized. His head was up side down, his stomach had turned more then once -- he had barely eaten a bite -- the whole universe was walking on its hands for all that mattered.

The tall man heaved a sigh that equalled his height in depth. The same words had repeated constantly in his mind, his chocolate-brown eyes glued to the picture he held. _It could not be possible_. Not after all the trouble he went through, not after swallowing so much of his pride he wondered why so many still compared him to a rooster.

"Sorry Uki…"

A knock on the door swallowed Sano's low murmur. He did not have the power to pull himself off the couch and open the door. He did not feel strong enough to inform the intruder that the door was open either. Instead, the young man's eyes remained glued to the young woman in the framed picture.

"Sano...? Sano, it's me." Said the intruder, still on the other side of the door.

It was Kenshin. What was he doing here? The shape of a wrapped box flashed in Sanosuke's mind and triggered his memory. The redheaded teacher was supposed to come and pick up Hiko's gift.

"Sanosuke? Are you in there?" Kenshin knew how to be persistent.

The sound of a jiggled knob came to the man's ears. The door was pulled opened and footsteps echoed in the lobby. With a side-glance, Sanosuke spotted his friend. He looked tired but that disappeared as soon as his purple eyes saw the devastated man sprawled on the couch.

"Sano…" His voice was soft and sad.

The tall man shrugged and returned his gaze to the picture-frame. Kenshin walked to the living room and took a seat beside his childhood friend. He did not talk, simply sat there, leaning back into the rough although still soft couch.

"I'm drained…" he admitted after a long silence and empty stucco-gazing -- stucco was everywhere it seemed.

"You're not the only one…" snorted Sano, finally able to find his tongue -- or at least some will to use it.

"We lost?" Asked the redhead.

The tall man chuckled mirthlessly. "Not quite…"

Kenshin turned to stare at his friend's brooding features. "Then why so depressed?"

Sano closed his eyes and exhaled a long, grieving breath. "I get a right to visit…"

There was a moment of silence then, slowly, the longhaired man started to react. First his shoulders trembled, then his throat tingled and finally he started to chuckle. How ironic! Sano followed him and they both began to laugh. So loud, so true, it has been an eternity since they laughed so.

"Man…" stuttered Kenshin, wiping a tear from the corner of his eye. "You'll have to endure Hiko once every what?" he asked, still chuckling.

"Twice!" Corrected Sano with sarcastic humour. "I get to see that damned old alcoholic twice a week." It really was too much. "I even get the right to spend the week-end there! Aint that just wonderful?"

Their laughter died just as suddenly as it had started and both leaned back on the couch.

"How'd it turned out with the Missy?"

Kenshin sighed.

"I can't say, that I can't…"

Sano frowned.

"Why?"

"Miss Tae does not like it and I'm not all too sure about Miss Sae." Remembering the woman's reaction of denial, he shook his head. "I'm not allowed the see her alone."

"Rough…" commented Sano.

"Indeed." His friend agreed.

"So I suppose your godfather's gift won't be of much use for a while…" Joked the tall man, snickering slightly.

"Heh…" it was a soft sound of appreciation for the effort but far from even a chortle. "At least, we'll see them."

Sano sighed. "I hate your logic, man."

Both men shared a moment of quiet reflection. In the kitchen, the old refrigerator started to complain. Outside, a car horn shattered the remaining quietude, a few shouts followed and tires screeched. It was a usual morning for the neighbourhood.

"I know you don't like talking about it but… Sano… What exactly happened that day?"

"I'm not sure myself…" He confessed. "I thought for years it was Yoshiki… but now... I mean after you told me he went to jail and… I don't know." He paused and looked out the window to his right, fingers tracing the lines of the frame in his hands. "It was a warning… but I'm not so sure they actually meant to kill her."

Kenshin nodded.

"I suppose they wanted to make sure the organization would no longer get in their way."

"You know… If Yahiko had not been there, I would have run after them."

The teacher sighed.

"I might have given you a hand…"

"You would?" Sano's brown eyes were large and wide.

Kenshin smiled sadly.

"We did well not to get involved."

Sano grimaced.

"You should've seen her… I could barely recognize her." Saying so, he traced a finger on the face of the woman in the picture. "I promised her to take care of him…"

The redhead rested one hand on his friend's shoulder and applied gentle pressure. "You did well, that you did."

"The judge and jury don't seem to agree…"

"They know nothing."

Sano heaved. "Better that way."

For the hours to come, the friends remained in relative silence. Whoever said that time made things better never saw much of life.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"I'm sure Kaoru will be happy when we'll tell her the news!" Exclaimed Misao as she climbed the last step.

Aoshi was about to knock at the door when he said, "Of course," and he proceeded to commit the task.

There was a slight wait before Sae came to open the door. The dark-haired man could mask his surprise when the woman appeared. She was not smiling. Sae not smiling was a sign of either great devastation or death. Immediately, Misao worried.

"Is Kaoru alright?"

Sae eyes opened wide and she shook her head. "No… no," she stuttered.

"Then… they sent a warning!" Misao was convinced her greatest fear had come to life. "I knew we shouldn't have come…"

Aoshi gave her an odd look. "You were the first one to beg Okina when I suggested the trip."

The girl darkened. "It's MY FAULT!" She was not very far from panic.

In a flash, she ran inside, her shoes flying about as she tripped down the main hall to Kaoru's bedroom. She slammed into a locked door and despair twisted her face.

"Kaoru! Kaoru! Are you alright!" She shouted nearly hysterical.

"Calm down Misao." Implored Sae, "she's been locked in her room all morning."

"I take she's not happy." Stated Aoshi.

Meanwhile Kaoru had opened her door for the green-eyed girl. She locked the both of them in once more with a swift movement. Sae sighed, her shoulders slumped and her spirits just as low.

"I just have trouble seeing when I close my eyes."

Aoshi blinked. "Close your eyes?"

Sae smiled gently and guided the young man to the living room. "Kaoru is in love with Mr. Himura."

He nodded.

"It was hard not to notice."

"Are you not worried?" Asked the woman as she took a seat.

He followed her lead.

"I would be should he be someone else."

Sae frowned.

"You mean to tell me you trust him that much?"

"He obviously returns her feelings, besides, he's a discrete man."

"With hair like that…" exclaimed Sae. She crossed her arms and looked away, but uncrossed them just as swiftly. "I must admit he's quite a gentleman."

"I think he don't want attention as much as us."

"Still… he's her teacher… and married!"

"Hardly something to worry about," Aoshi said. "I don't mean that I approve of it, but honestly there's nothing much we can do about it. Is there?"

"Tae said about the same thing before she left for the restaurant this morning." Sae's voice sounded distractedly distant. "It surprised me. Yesterday she was all fire when Kaoru called and today…"

The young man cleared his throat.

"All that really worries me is the attention it could get us should this fall on unwanted ears."

Sae nodded.

"You and my sister seem to share quite a lot in common, at least in opinions." Some of her spirits seemed to have steered back to life for she gave him a side-glance and smirked. "Ever though of dating her?"

Aoshi did not show any surprise but the corner of his lips lifted slightly.

"I'm not much for romance." He admitted.

"That's too bad, really. You're quite a handsome young man." No one could blame her for trying, not even Aoshi.

"I've been told so, many times." He shrugged. "Well, I need to talk with your niece."

"She's already taken!" Exclaimed Sae, feigning disappointment. "Try on a free and more mature woman." She winked.

"You are one strange woman." Muttered Aoshi as he closed on Kaoru's bedroom door.

"I've been told so, many times."

The young lawyer sighed and was about to knock on the door when Kaoru's voice reached his ears.

"I love him, Misao." The declaration was muted by the wall separating them but he could hear the faint sorrow lingering in her tone.

"Did you…" Misao did not dare to complete her sentence. Instead -- or so Aoshi suspected -- she must have mimed the remaining words.

There was a silence until the blue-eyed girl answered.

"I don't want to talk about it…"

"Then you did!"

"Misao!" Exclaimed the young woman.

"I promise not to talk about it to anyone… Not even Sou-_chan_."

"Misao…" she warned.

Aoshi judged the moment propitious for an interruption and rapped his knuckles on the soft, brown plywood. Misao unlocked and opened the door for him. She stepped aside and allowed the tall man inside. Kaoru sat on her bed, eyes red and hugged an old white stuffed cat that came straight out of '_Hello Kitty_'. It had been the young woman's first plush toy. She had bitten its ears more then once as a kid, the white material had turned grey and the blue dress was in a relatively bad condition. Still, the toy held all of its adorableness and comfort when so tightly held to her chest.

"Kaoru… Did Misao give you the news?"

The said girl blinked, "News?"

Misao sprang to life. "Oh! I almost forgot!" She grinned wide and knelt in front of her friend, fingers playing with the ear of the stuffed toy. "Jiya called the hotel yesterday."

Aoshi closed the door.

"There's been some development. They caught a man that claims to have been on watch duty that day."

Kaoru sat in astounded silence. She could not believe her ears although Misao was ecstatic.

"See, I told you they'd get somethin' pretty soon, didn't I?"

Her friend nodded, somewhat dazed.

"That's great…"

The green-eyed girl pouted.

"You don't sound so happy about it… Didn't you wanna to come back?"

"Of course… of course… But…"

"It's been months since they last got a lead… and that's all the reaction you have?" Chastised Misao and she crossed her arms over her chest and puffed.

Kaoru shook her head and smiled softly.

"I'm sorry Misao. It's great news… really. I just have a lot on my mind."

Aoshi nodded in understanding.

"Sae told me about it."

"I thought it would cheer you up. I'm sure Kenshin will be happy to know that things are moving." Said Misao.

Kaoru shook her head.

"He doesn't know anything."

Misao blinked.

"What? Why not?" She was confused.

"If there's too many people involved it could get ugly." Explained Aoshi and Kaoru agreed with a sign of her head.

"I don't get it… You're both in love… Maybe he could help too. He seems the kind of guy that could do that, no?"

Kaoru shrugged.

"It's really not that easy. Aoshi's right, the more who knows about it, the more dangerous it could get."

The petit girl shook her head.

"Shouldn't you be telling each other everything?"

Kaoru frowned.

"It's not like he's telling me everything either. Aoshi probably knows more about him than I do." She sounded sour.

Said man sighed, "You're both being very protective. Just know that there are some similarities in your situations."

"Great!" complained the girl. "Now I'm even more curious… Thanks Aoshi."

"No problem."

"When are you two returning to Tokyo?" She asked sounding somewhat dry.

"Tonight." Answered Misao. She looked rather sullen.

"Will I… have to go there and identify that guy?"

Aoshi shook his head. "It's safer if you stay here. We'll send you pictures if necessary."

"Jiya said the guy was only a street tug. You know…"

Kaoru nodded.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Hiko took a rather large draught right from the sake jug. His interlocutor smirked and, with a precise twist of his wrist, swirled the tea in his cup. It still needed to cool down a bit so he could better savour the delicious taste of Lily-Ann's homemade green tea.

"Miss Randlett is a very skilled woman when it comes to tea." Said the man, eying Hiko from the other side of the table.

"I believe you didn't come all the way here only to praise Lily-Ann's tea… did you?"

The man sighed.

"No… Word is that Mr. Sagara had struggles with the law once more."

The sake-lover nodded.

"You know the rooster. Too dumb to know where or when to draw the line."

"Kenshin had to appear in court… It caused us more trouble than would actually have been necessary."

"You know kids." Started Hiko. "They love to do as they please."

"Hiko, I've been severely warned this time. We can't protect your pupil forever. Next time, I can't guarantee his past will remain a secret."

It was the kendo teacher's turn to sigh.

"He's an idiot doubled with a fool. I could never put some sense in that airhead. It's not about to start today."

The second man chortled.

"Although you seem to share similar ideals." He took a careful sip of his beverage.

"It's not because I'm backing you up that I actually agree with your position." Growled Hiko slightly annoyed.

The man chuckled some more.

"No, I suppose not."

There was a timid knock on the shoji and the shape of a small woman could be seen through the paper.

"Phone, Hiko." She said before she knelt and slid the door opened.

Hiko arched an eyebrow and strode to Lily-Ann.

"Who is it?" He asked when she handed him the wireless receiver.

"Kenshin." She beamed.

Their guest smiled.

"Speaking of the devil."

The tall man grinned and pulled the phone to his ear.

"Was my gift of any use yesterday?" he asked.

"I never liked your humour." Replied Kenshin, quite crossly.

"Of course, if you were as handsome as I," pursued Hiko, ignoring his godchild's protest. "You'd be in need of those much more frequently and I would not have to worry and go to the trouble of getting you a box."

Kenshin had rolled his eyes, Hiko was most certain of this. The young man's sigh was also very revealing of his opinion. The tall man grinned, that should have evened the score a little -- more like reinforced the huge gap.

"So it _was_ useful."

"_Shishou_… It was not necessary, that it was not."

The other man in the room eyed Hiko with a rather odd glare and the kendo _sensei_ shrugged.

"Don't worry, the woman at the drugstore thought it was for me."

"_Shishou_!" Shout an indignant Kenshin.

His godfather smirked.

"Is she with you now?"

"I'm at Sano's… he's taking a shower at the moment, that he is." There was a pause. "He's devastated."

"He should be. Aoshi called this morning to tell us the news." He glanced toward the redheaded woman and smiled -- which was a rather rare sight. "It lit your mother's mood when I told her Yahiko would stay with us. She's welcomed the brat with affection it seems. Troubled children always seem to remind her of her son… I wonder why."

Kenshin sighed again.

"That's good for her… I'm happy, that I am. I'm worried about Sano though."

"Not too thrilled to come and visit us, is he?" Hiko chortled. "Finally! I though we'd never get rid of the freeloader." His voice was warm though, and it almost sounded regretful, but very subtly.

"He's been through worse." Said the redhead.

There was a pause before Hiko talked again.

"Your little trial made quite a fuss up there, you know?"

"It was Saito's suggestion, that it was."

The guest was staring at his host with a piercing glare, elbows on the table, chin rested on his joined hands. He was observing with expert eyes every detail of the conversation. One could learn a lot by simply watching a subject.

"It was not his idea?" He asked Hiko.

The man nodded.

"Saito's?" It was not necessary for his godchild to know the other man was present.

"He was not very inclined to it, that he was not. But he got us most of the information and did a remarkable job with it."

"In clear words, it was your decision in the end." Summarized Hiko.

To that, the man drank the rest of his tea, an eyebrow arched in mild surprise.

"I'll have to have a talk with Mr. Saito… if he'll hear me." He declared.

Hiko smirked. There was a certain animosity between his guest and Saito. They used to be from different parties and Kenshin ended up giving the wolf-like man more than one visit -- as well as exchanging more than one injury. Not many appreciated Saito Hajime.

"Could you tell Mr. Katsura that I might have to meet with him?" Asked Kenshin.

This surprised Hiko, "Whatever for?" though it never showed in his voice.

"_Sessha _will tell you another time, that he will." Reverting to over-politeness was always a good diversion tactic when talking with the sake-lover. He always had a certain reluctance to civility in general.

"Kenshin…" he warned.

"Tell mother I love her." Said man retorted and hung up the second after.

Hiko growled slightly as he pushed the off button of the cordless phone.

"The airhead tells you that you'll have things to tell each other soon."

The man -- now identified as Mr. Katsura -- frowned. This was not a pleasant surprise. There was already so much trouble brooding here and in Tokyo.

He got to his feet, bowed to Hiko who sniffed and to Lily-Ann who politely returned the gesture. That woman was, by all means, a very remarkable one. Although his family, as well as the rest of Kyoto, had constantly deplored the '_invasion_' of foreigners, Mr. Katsura became fond of this one.

He sighed, "I've been so close to this family that I am starting to feel so much like I'm part of it." He confessed as he crossed the doorframe. "It would be a shame should it come apart…" He was truly sadden by the prospect and secretly prayed for this to never happen.

Hiko nodded. Not for the first time he wished his godchild had made wiser decisions. Yet again, some of the things the redhead did, although shameful, turned out for the better good in the end. Mr. Katsura walked back to the entry door accompanied by Lily-Ann. Had some sacrifices not been made, the lovely woman would have suffered so much more than she already did. Still, it cost her son so much. Was she even aware of it?

It was painful to admit and now Hiko wished he had been wise enough to find another solution. The tall man eyed his sake jar, as if accusing the jug of all the trouble in their lives. Of course, it had nothing to do with them but it still felt good to accuse something more tangible than just faith.

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**_Eden_****_'s Reviewers Corner:_**

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**Soniya**** Himoura:** I'm not familiar with the expression 'stepped it up'… but I suppose that if you believe so, than indeed Kenshin is. Although I'd rather know exactly what it means. I hope you took the time to re-read the story although it's not completely edited yet, if not then I don't suppose it really matters. As long as you're enjoying the story so far! But about Kaoru and Tokyo… There's still a long way for that information to be given. I'm evil!****

**InuYashaGurl2007:** Glad the bonus chapter was to your liking…

**Rockergirl1991:** Is giving a date to your pen-name becoming a popular trend? I shouldn't be surprised though. I did name my cat 'Epitaph 2012' (a not so coded code for 2012's prophesy one of my old roommates used to blabber so much about last winter…) Thanks for your review.

**Guardian Forever:** Glad you liked the bonus. I'm always very worried when I write lemons. Heh… but I'm still having trouble with love confessions (referring to your review and not the story). I'm sorry for the absence of mushiness but, really, love's not all about sweet and cuddly… right? At least it never was for me… not that I actually have a lot of experience in the matter. Sigh. I must say I did a fairly good job in concealing the trouble of Kaoru. I wanted to give more accents to Kenshin's past since the first two part of the story was mostly about him. And I must add, you're doing a wonderful job editing this story. I don't think I'll ever tell you enough! I love you girl! - (so much for my trouble with confessions… hehe)

**Cobaltsky****** Heh… Hello to you as well. It's progressing slowly, you're right. Much too slowly for my taste, but isn't all relationship progressing much the same way. And yes, hard times are bound to come and sooner than we should all expect. As I said in the synopsis, this story is about choices people make and the repercussions they cause. So, of course, most of Kaoru and Kenshin's trouble are bound to be, for a part, their fault.

**Sims are awesome:** Cute…? I'm forever cursed with that godforsaken tag! (In a good way… I suppose) Thanks, hope this chapter was to your liking.

**Royal BlueKisune:** Fluff, fluff, and more fluff. Isn't that what everyone wants in a RK fanfiction? But yeah… It's all getting worse, especially now that it's official to Sae and Tae. All along, I don't think I ever said that the twins knew, but I hinted more for suspicions. Thank you for your encouragements, I'm doing fine in college… Well, as fine as I can do anyway. Heh.

**Mary: **Um… premise and execution? I'm sorry but I don't quite understand what you mean by that. But I'm thrilled to know that you see the reactions of Sae and Tae as being realistic. I grew up in a fairly open-minded family of two (my mother and I) and I've always been a rather reasonable teenager (but I can't say I'm a reasonable adult… heh). Actually, it's a nice compliment if it looks just even a little bit like your parent's potential reaction. That means I actually hit what I was aiming. Though um… '_It wasn't cool how Kenshin had sex with Kaoru while he's still married_'. I partly agree and disagree. In one chapter Kenshin admits it has been a long time since he last had sex and knowing that our beloved Rurouni is a rather passionate man… sex must be somewhat important for him. At least that's what I think. Remember that he struggled to keep his hands away from Kaoru in that particular chapter (although it was a loosing battle from the beginning) and Kaoru was consenting if not urging him. Anyway, just keep reading, sex is actually a much larger part of this story. That's actually why I decided to include lemons as well. Anyway, thank you for reading and I hope to hear of you in the chapters to come!

**Ixchen** Thank you. Taking a month for reviewing and edition was a real pain. I couldn't wait to start writing again! I hope you liked this chapter.

**Luna987: **Mystery is all my life. I was voted the most mysterious girl of my class when I finished high school. (Boarding schools has too many lunatics.) Heh, hope you enjoyed this chapter as well.

**Kirika** Well… this chapter very much answers your question, doesn't it? Thanks for taking the time to review.

**Crossfire:** I'm sorry it took so long, but reviewing and editing could no longer wait. I hope you took the time to re-read or else I'll feel like I did all that for nothing… Not exactly, but, heh, can't blame me for trying to advertise, no?

**SeaBreeze**I don't recall you reviewing chapter 16 but you were actually the only one to send me a reaction to my author's note. I must say that your assumptions are all very well founded but I actually can't guaranty all will end well. At least not in Honeysuckles and Moonlight Shreds. I also have to admit that I'm dying to write the two other '_parts_' of this story. One of those two will actually be in a genre I rarely if ever wrote under, so I'm very excited about it. Don't say it was unhelpful though. It truly was. You told me that I was pacing my story well (slow but well anyway). About Sano… All I can say is that time only can tell. Thank you… Magnificent actually swell my ego a bit too much… heh. Thank you ever so much, your help was most precious.

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**_I seem to have my share of difficulties writing this chapter. Especially with the confession scene (as I labelled it). Four different characters, four different reactions. It was hard to jiggle with so many possibilities. I feared that Sae's reaction was too much and Tae's was too cold. (Thus the little discussion with Kenshin and Tae in the end of the second part.) Also, this chapter gives a lot of information, but everything remains so vague. To tell you the truth, it's even harder to give the proper amount of information when you know everything there is to know. It's like making the summary of a good movie. You don't want everyone to know what's going to happen, or what happened. Of course, this is chapter 17 so… at some point there's got to be revelations. All I'm really worrying about is if I gave too much at the same time. I sincerely do hope I managed a good dosage. _**

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**_Eden's Epitaph_**

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_P.S: Guys, I really mean it. Many chapters were corrected and some information were either taken out or improved. I'm sorry to stress this, but I highly suggest everyone re-read from the beginning or else I fear confusion in the end. _

_Thank you all so very. _

_Even if you are only a reader, every person that gives even a bit of attention to this story is also giving it a living breath._

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_Edited by Guardian Forever_

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	19. A Semblance of Usual

**Warnings:** **Nothing.**

_**Honeysuckles and Moonlight Shreds**_

_By Eden's Epitaph_

Chapter 18: _A Semblance of Usual_

Kaoru, not for the first time, harboured a definite hate for the shrieks of her alarm clock this morning. The night had not been very pleasant. She was restless and her mind, tangled with emotions, created series of odd spinets of dreams spiralling from one to another without much coherence. Just as her life had been the past few months. In all, lately, tension was at its pike in the Sekihara residence. At least to the young woman's point of view, it was. Tae had been acting nothing far of a shrew since the trial… and what happened afterward.

Actually, her aunt was simply being protective of her niece and the blue-eyed girl was rather aware of it, but that did not change the fact that it was Kenshin they were talking about, the sweetest man in the world, not some old pervert. And because of the rules Tae implanted, Kaoru had not seen the face of her lover for the remaining of summer break. She tried to console herself with what little time she was allowed on the phone with him but Tae was always nearby, eavesdropping. No privacy at all. This was enough to drive her mad.

The young woman sighed. She understood her aunt's concerns, and she was aware of the consequences if attention came her way but she felt she could trust Kenshin with anything. Besides, the mare on his cheek and the scars that ran all across his body spoke loud and told her he too had his share of problems. He would understand, there was no doubt, but Kaoru was still reluctant to tell him. Aside the strict rule of secrecy over the whole subject, the memories of the events themselves were all too fresh. Besides, Tae would have an attack should it ever happen -- not that she care that much anymore, with all the pressure that woman was pulling her through.

And also, there was school…

"Well, well, well, if it isn't Miss Puddle." sneered a girl from behind her.

Kaoru peered to the side. "Yamazaki," she said, trying hard to sound detached and untouchable. "Had a pleasant vacation?"

Of course, if the day started on the wrong side of the bed, then it was only natural that Rumiko and her goons -- the faux-blonde girl with pigtails and the timid one with glasses -- would eventually pop out and pull at the already tight strings of Kaoru's mood.

The haughty girl raised an eyebrow and snorted. "Not as good as yours, I'm sure."

The pigtail girl chuckled and her shy friend blushed, Rumiko beamed.

The blue-eyed girl shrugged and shouldered her schoolbag. "You have no idea…" She muttered sarcastically, just about to walk through the gate.

"So Kenshin's bed was that comfortable?"

Kaoru froze, the old yellow back-pack slid down a notch and her fists tightened by her side. How she wish she could unwind in a violent outburst and, for once, shut that irritating loud-mouthed harpy. The blue-eyed girl took a not so calming deep breath. Her body shuddered lightly in barely restrained frustration, there had been too much stress lately and her nerves were just about to break.

Instead of answering, Kaoru continued on her way. Ignoring bullies had proven to be effective while knocking them down always brought more trouble. The young woman intended not to allow her anger to get her, once again, into detention. There were already enough problems without having her temper so generously give her more. If she was to get more attention her way, Tae would have her head for sure.

But Rumiko had other plans.

"You know, Puddle, who does not say a word consents, that's what they say anyway." she teased.

Kaoru bit her lip, closed her eyes and dug her nails into her palms. "And if I deny?"

"Then you have something to hide." chuckled the pigtail girl.

Kaoru sighed and reached the steps leading to the school's entry. "If I understand, I don't have much to say to shut you up, do I? So tell me, Yamazaki," her blue eyes met the other girl's brown ones and glared. "Why do you even bother asking?"

Feeling threatened, Rumiko frown back and joined Kaoru on the steps. "I have proof."

The blue-eyed girl blinked. "Proof?"

The girl smiled evilly. "Remember, a few days ago, downtown, you were with that crazy squirt."

"Misao." corrected Kaoru.

Rumiko shrugged. "Right, whatever… Remember what I told you?"

The raven-haired young woman feigned carelessness and pushed through the building's main door. Inside, students were chattering in a loud, intelligible rumble. The sound of slammed lockers, footsteps and books was all around them, akin to the deep humming of meditating monks but without the wisdom… and the legendary calm.

"If you're talking about the day we returned from the beach, he was giving me a lift." retorted a very irritated Kaoru.

Rumiko smirked, her two faithful friends already lined behind her, ready to answer to her every needs at the snap of a finger.

"If I were you," she said, "I'll confess and just be over with it. Everyone will be satisfied and you'll finally get some rest." Then she chuckled. "Maybe."

Kaoru continued to walk in the direction of the classroom, her mood about to reach '_red-alert_' level. It would not take long before she would crack and it only added to her frustration. Can't the world give her some rest every once in a while?

"Yamazaki," she growled, "there's nothing going on between Mr. Himura and me."

The pigtail girl lifted her hands in the air in an exaggerated shrug and cocked her bleached head to the side. "Denial."

Rumiko laughed cruelly and patted the blue-eyed girl on the shoulder. "If you keep going this way, Miss Puddle, you better learn to keep a closer look to your back."

Kaoru froze and growled in the doorway and turn a murderous glare on her aggressor. "Is that a threat?"

Rumiko crossed her arms over her amble chest and arched a fine eyebrow in arrogance. "What do you think?"

Mastering a kendo style had always proven to be both a blessing and a disaster, and the young master of _Kamiya_ _Kashin _was well aware of that. On the good sides of her martial arts abilities were quick and accurate reflexes of which she was very proud. Not a soul saw her hand move, but Rumiko felt it almost instantly when her fingers pressed a very sensitive point on her right elbow. The way Kaoru had placed her hand gave the illusion of a friendly touch but in reality the tip of her thumb and third finger were strategically placed on each sides of a quite painful pressure point.

Angry blue orbs met suddenly petrified brown eyes. "I think that spoiled brats like you should go to hell." She seethed.

What happened next left a bitter taste at the back of her mouth.

"Miss Kamiya, such words are worth detention in this establishment."

Kenshin stood between the two other girls and had an expression of dutiful chastising but when Kaoru looked into his eyes after releasing Rumiko, she saw the silent disappointment in those purple pools. He saw through her disguised offence. A tinge of shame bit her heart but Kaoru's pride prevented the spread as it murmured the legitimacy of her reaction.

"This evening, after class." He sighed.

The redheaded teacher walked into class with a light shrug of his head. When he reached his desk, he instructed the students to do the same and began the lesson.

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Kenshin leaned back on his chair, an opened book covering his expression. The young teacher was close to exhaustion. Kinks and stress knots had worked their way between three vertebras in the middle of his back, his head throbbed slightly and his body felt heavy. Summer break turned out to be everything but restful and the redheaded young man had trouble getting everything back in order. If not at least a semblance of it.

The day had been long too. Students were still very excited and keeping their attention on the lessons had been troublesome. It was not unusual for teenagers to be turbulent when they returned from a holyday or vacation, but this time was very different. In three weeks, the rumour spread like a virulent infection within campus, infecting every student, even the younger ones. To Kenshin's great demise, he intercepted more then a dozen notes and messages and interrupted countless conversation discussing that dangerous topic.

And that madness continued all day long, out of every teacher's control. Kenshin even received letters asking details about the rumour. It was all very frustrating for him and he could only imagine how much it pressed on his lover's shoulders. A feeling of guilt also ate at his stomach all day. When the rumours had begun to form, there had been nothing to worry about in the teacher's mind. Nothing had happened yet. Someone was bitter after loosing the contest and seriously lacked some imagination.

But then they became real.

The redhead groaned at his foolishness under his book. He should have been more careful and kept those feelings locked at least until Kaoru would have graduated. Sano once said that Kenshin would always lose a certain sense of rationality whenever he was in love. Never been so right. Sanosuke could say some very intelligent things every once in a while and that thought craved a mild smile on the weary teacher's lips. He heard a giggle and a soft voice followed.

"Mr. Himura, what are you thinking about?"

"Actually, I had been thinking about you, Miss Kamiya."

The teacher pulled the book down to his chin and met the young woman's blue eyes. She was blushing again but did not seem otherwise embarrassed. She sat on the desk in front of his and readjusted her skirt before her gaze turned back to his.

"I missed you," she murmured and he nodded, they were, after all, within the school's walls.

"You heard about Yahiko?" He asked.

She frowned lightly. "Yeah… Aoshi told me before he left the other day. Is Sano alright?"

Kenshin shrugged and leaned on his elbows and hands. "He will be fine, I trust him, that I do."

Kaoru smiled gently. "And Yahiko?"

"He's in good hands."

The young woman chuckled. "With Hiko? That's hard to believe."

The redhead laughed as well. "You'd be surprised." Then he regained some seriousness but kept a smile. "Now if you would please sit on the chair, I have to remind you that you are in detention, that I have."

The girl pouted but did as instructed. She was not all too happy with this whole detention thing. Kaoru was aware she had stepped on the border of acceptable, after all using a pressure point was maybe a bit of over-reaction and she might admit to have lost her temper. Still, she was most convinced that Rumiko deserved the little bit of pain. The blue-eyed girl was certainly not her first victim.

"Kaoru…?" He said softly.

She looked up and realised she had started to shake under the pressure of all her stress and frustrations. He gave her an understanding smile. Kenshin had to deal with nearly just as much tension. Kaoru took a calming breath and returned her gaze back to her teacher.

"I know you wouldn't harm anyone unless there is a very good reason," he started and the girl blinked. "What did Rumiko tell you?"

Kaoru frowned and crossed her arms and grunted. "She was just being herself."

"Kaoru." He knew she was not telling him everything.

The blue-eyed girl sighed. "It's my problem."

Kenshin shook his head. "Was it about us?"

For a moment, she hesitated. "It was."

Kenshin looked at the girl for a moment waiting for her to give him some more details but she remained silent. "This situation is getting a bit out of hand." He sighed leaning back on his chair wearily. "What exactly are they all chattering about…?"

Kaoru became thoughtful trying to remember all the little bits she heard of the different rumours. "They all have about the same context. Basically, we've been sleeping together for a long time. Participated into sexual act in and outside school and that is why I won the contest. There are variants though," she said with a deep sigh. "One says I slept with all the teachers, including Mrs. Hirazawa. I heard from a few girls during summer break that, apparently, we were staring in three porno movies and that you are the head of a '_school girl_' prostitution group or something."

Kenshin blinked, the last three had never reached his ears before. "All from Rumiko?"

The young woman shrugged. "I don't know," she muttered tiredly. "There's a lot of student and mouth to ear deforms a lot."

"I don't like this." He admitted after a minute of silence.

Kaoru looked at him with questioning eyes. "Most of their rumours are false, Kenshin, I don't think there's really something to worry about."

"Words can do a lot and are easily spread, that they do," he shook his head. "I worry mostly about you from wha-…"

"Don't think about that, please."

The redheaded teacher frowned. "How is it going at home?"

She gave him a thankful smile then sobered. "Tae is over-protective and we haven't been talking much since that day." She sounded sad but she smiled once more. "Sae is more understanding, though."

The young man nodded. "On my side, I got the formularies ready." Kaoru gave him a companionate look but he smiled.

"It gets a bit lonesome… doesn't it?"

He did not quite understand what she meant but when he noticed the light blush that colored her face, Kenshin could only agree with a longing look. Two desk separated them physically, but a world of principles and circumstances kept them apart. All he wanted was to reach out and touch her cheek, maybe even touch her lips and, if lucky, have them over his. He missed holding her close, although it only occurred a few times, he was already addicted to the love he could gain from her presence.

Kenshin was about to succumb to the temptation of getting up and just hold her tight when a small, somewhat plump, woman with amazingly large eyes appeared at the classroom door. She held a note pad pressed to a more then generous chest and she handed the young teacher a small piece of red paper.

"Mr. Himura, the principal wishes to see you." She explained.

Kenshin looked at her, puzzled. "I'm in the middle of detention, Miss Sakura. Tell him I'll be there in about half an hour."

The woman shook her head and pointed at the red piece of paper, urging him to read. "I'll take care of your detention while you are away, Mr. Himura." She assured.

The young man frowned then paled as he read the note. He felt Kaoru's persistent gaze on him, inquiring. "Alright…" He gave his lover a secret look and stepped out of the classroom.

In the distance, he could hear the secretary discuss softly with Kaoru and all Kenshin could think about as he walked down the corridor was how much he just wanted to be with her. It was time together that they needed most, time to learn to trust and time to learn to talk. He knew if everything remained in the dark, sooner or later, it would only turn into poison.

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Yahiko sat in what the students of his school had named '_The Purgatory_' with a pack of ice warped in a towel over a throbbing cheek. The purgatoryt ice warped in a towel over anl over an throabing cheekncipal' was, actually, just a simple waiting room shared with the principal's secretary, a huge woman with tiny although all seeing eyes that reminded most students of an angry dragon waiting to devour them. The walls were painted a bright orange with three framed abstract painting on each of them. Near the door to the principal's office was a row of five chairs that felt like and looked like they were made of old, grey carpet.

The boy had, once again, broken into a fist fight with a classmate. It was stupid, really. During recess a boy from his class stole the soccer ball Yahiko had been kicking at the wall. He claimed it was to play a match but when the spiky-headed boy asked to join a team, he was told off. Reasoning quite simply, he concluded that if the other children took the ball and he was not allowed to play, then it was only fair he would fight for it. Thus he cracked the boy's nose and earned himself a nice black-eye and a trip to '_The Purgatory_'.

However, that was just the point of the iceberg. A very tiny point too, for it was not the first time he knocked the heck out of a '_friend_' for '_apparently_' no reason and they -- school staff and students alike, or so it seemed -- had had enough of it. They called Hiko and prompted the man to come and have a meeting with the principal. One can easily imagine what was to follow.

Sanosuke was not very convincing as a parent's figure. Yahiko often compared his uncle's discipline abilities to those of a sea turtle, inexistent -- if '_Finding Nemo_' was not taken into consideration -- while, on the other hand, Hiko's felt like Zeus all mighty. Everything about the impressive man screamed power and authority. He was huge, imposing and dark-looking and Yahiko could not suppress a deep, angry sigh. It was not fair, he thought. No, not fair at all.

But his thoughts were crushed by the ancient Greek god's personification -- also known under the name of _Shishou _and Seijuro Hiko -- walking out of the principal's office. He looked as usual, dramatically passive and uncaring. He spared the boy a look and signalled him to get up and out. Yahiko blinked and did as told but turned around at the last moment to question but he never quite had the time to ask before an answer came.

"Suspended," Said Hiko and stepped into the hall. "Lucky, no?"

And he leaded the way out of the school, a dazzled and confused Yahiko trailing behind.

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Kenshin closed the office door, frowned and sighed. His conversation -- more like confrontation -- with the principal had turned out more difficult and worrisome than he had expected. A new piece to his lover's strange puzzle had been added but with it came more questions he could not ask without giving some of his own in return. Kenshin did not felt quite ready for that, yet.

The secretary, Miss Sakura, greatly appreciated within the school for her gentleness -- and her delicious cookie recipes which were renowned far and wide, at least in Kyoto High School -- gave him a somewhat encouraging smile and a timid thumb up. Kenshin returned the smile and shrugged. Meetings with the principal was never pleasant, even for a teacher and especially for him. Those two went back a long way, a very long way.

The podgy woman eyed him curiously. "What did he want?"

The redheaded teacher sighed shaking his head. "He's concerned about the rumours."

That was not entirely true. Miss Kaoru Kamiya and the rumours circling about a sexual relationship between her and Kenshin had been part of the subject but the focus was more about the young woman's safety. Without giving much details, the principle explained how crucial it was to quiet down the loud noises running around in school. It was nothing Tae or Kaoru herself had not warned him about countless times already, but one detail stuck out. Apparently, her admittance into this school had more than one reason behind it since the principle seemed to know mostly everything about her.

"I think it's very awful what kids can do to each other these days." said the secretary in sign of empathy. "I'm telling you, lies like that should be a crime."

Kenshin shrugged and reached for the exit. "I wish more people would think like you, that I do."

His conscience cried at the back of his mind as he walked out into the corridor. He did not particularly enjoyed lying but this situation was requiring more and more of those by the day. What sort of big mess was about to come out of this, Kenshin was not sure but he had the feeling it was not going to be pleasant.

If anyone were to find out that there were some founding into the running rumours, that is.

The redhead skidded to a halt by the teacher's room door, a hand on the door and frowned as a thought occurred to him. Just who was he kidding? By the way things were going it was only a question of time before somebody cleaver enough could figure it out. Hiko, Tae and even Sanosuke had seen it… Sano even saw it coming. With a heavy sigh, the young man turned the doorknob and walked in. His heart sinking, he passed the lounge and the coffee machines into a corridor at the back. Passing a series of wooden doors, Kenshin could feel the weight of reality as it started to descend once again upon him.

He reached his office and walked in with the firm intention of spending the night there. Turning on the lamp on his desk, Kenshin slumped down on his armchair. He checked the time from the corner of his eyes, Kaoru should be out of detention by now and most likely on her way home. The young man buried his head into his hands. He missed the young woman, he loved her and wanted to be with her. If only things were different.

If only.

With a groan, Kenshin sat up and turned his computer on. Kaoru had not been the only subject the principal and him had to discuss. The redhead had a reason of his own to see him. Kogoro Katsura -- that's the principal -- was a personal friend of Seijuro Hiko. He also used to be an active member of a particular political party several years ago and was a very influential man even today. It was not a secret to anybody and the school even took pride in having him as their principal. What they didn't know, however, was the real role Katsura was playing in his party.

Searching around the files in the machine, Kenshin pulled out a coded one and had to go through five different passwords to finally access it. It was a description list of personal information of some of the most wanted criminals of Japan as well as politicians, businessmen, corporations and even policemen and their departments. There was something he wanted to make sure about a certain agency and Katsura too. That was the main reason behind his meeting with Katsura this afternoon.

Sano's trial steered more attention then expected, and even from the beginning, the child agency always seemed to search for a reason to pull Sanosuke into court. It almost seemed as if someone was trying to reveal some well guarded secret about an event that happened 5 years ago.

Somebody else remembered.

And if somebody else remembered than that person was dangerous.

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Kaoru turned yet another corner somewhat wondering why she stayed here after detention instead of going back home as she was supposed to. It was getting late and the sun was about to set. The light passed through the windows and tinted the walls in orange giving the school a whole new aspect. It didn't seem so dull anymore, almost warmer.

"Though these corridors sure all look the same…" She muttered to herself before she turned to the left into a new wing of the establishment.

She wasn't so sure why she decided to explore the school after three months of attendance. At first, she wanted to have a guided tour but as her popularity dropped fairly quickly in just one hour, nobody even offered and Kaoru simply gave up on it. It was a nice and very modern school with both eastern and Japanese style working into one. All classes had both a shoji door for the students and a door with a knob for the teachers. She had noted that not all teachers used those doors, though Miss Hirazawa appreciated the distinction. It probably helped her feel more above her students. She had met with the gymnasium many times before and it was well equipped. There were even more sportive facilities outsides like a baseball court, two tennis courts, and large soccer field and both indoor and outdoor swimming pool. There was also an entire part of the edifice meant for clubs and students in general.

She was just walking out of that particular area when voices reached her ears.

Three girls, from the hushed tones of them and the high pitched giggles, right down this hall.

And their voices sounded all too familiar.

"I heard they did it right in the teacher's lounges!" Half whispered, half squealed one of the girls.

"Me too." Agreed another one.

"My friend told me that she saw them coming out of closet very flushed right after lunch." Confessed a third one.

Kaoru swallowed hard, fisting her hands in barely contained frustration. Won't this ever stop? Must she face with this horrible and not so entirely false rumour every corner? There was already enough pressure on her young shoulders without having to bare this as well. If it were of her alone, she'd have knocked some senses back into those imbeciles long ago. Then again, violence was never the best solution… still it was an easy and most effective one… at least for a while and it helped relief the tension.

Still, the blue-eyed girl turned on her heels and marched the other way. No sense confronting those babbling idiots, they wouldn't even begin to understand even if she tried hard to explain. After all, rumours were the juicy bits of entertainment that brought a little excitement into their boring lives. At least, Kaoru felt better believing it to be just that, and nothing more.

She was just barely about to turn the next corner and away from the blabbering idiots when she heard their footsteps drawing just about the other side of the corridor. If she started to run, the sound of her dash was bound to reach their ears and trigger their curiosity. Kaoru was in no mood for a confrontation so she spotted the first door, grabbed the knob and sneaked inside soundlessly. Back against the door, she sighed and slid down. Heart beating, she listened closely for the faint murmur of the girls as they closed in and walked by.

As soon as they were gone, she let go of the breath she had been holding in. Kaoru was never one to run, but for the sake of her aunts, if not her own, she had realised that low is better then high when some scary people are looking for you. And now that she thought about it, they were some very scary people looking for her.

With yet another sigh, the young woman picked herself up mind suddenly set in a gear. She never quite thought that much about it. Her father just died and she was still under the shock, then they moved her here in Kyoto of all places. In movies, when characters are hidden, they move them into another country… and change their names. They did nothing of such with her. Just told her she was going to the safest place in Japan. More like the safest hell in Japan. Changing country and name sounded even sweeter by the second. Still, if they had done so, she would never have met Kenshin and somehow, she felt thankful for that. Although she could not help but think that someday she would feel like changing her mind.

Kaoru took a look around and realised how different this place was from the rest of the school. It did not take long, just observing the furniture, and she knew she had just found her way into the teacher's room. Wasn't that door usually locked from the inside?

Shrugging the thought off, and curiosity sticking in, the blue eyed girl wondered where Kenshin's office might be. Judging by the time, she was certain he had gone back home by now, she just wanted to see what it looked like. Was it just as neat as his house?

There were two corridors at the back of a lounge area. She picked the left one and noticed that on each door lining up across the wall, there was a wooden plaque with the name of a teacher. After reading each one without any luck, she traced her way back and into the next corridor. To her surprise, one of them had a faint light slipping out of it. Heart beating, Kaoru walked closer, eyes focused on the wooden plaque, trying to read the name painted on it.

Himura Kenshin.

There he was, she thought, and the teacher inside as well. She froze in midway, pulled by two feelings. One of honour, who had promised her aunts not to have contact with Kenshin out of their supervision if not in class, and one of longing, who had not spoken with her lover in private for a long time. The tug-a-war began and clearly, her heart was starting to win over her mind. Kaoru took one step forward, hesitated then went straight to the door. Her hand trembled slightly when she reached for the knob but she walked in none the less. So anxious she was to see him, she completely forgot to knock before going inside.

Kenshin did not expect anyone to come into his office before morning at least but he had felt her presence the moment she walked into the lounges. He had expected that person to be a simple passer-by, maybe a teacher who had forgotten something and had come to retrieve it. Then the presence came closer and began to hesitate in front of his office and old experience reared in. Reaching in his drawer, he pulled out a long bundle of warped fabrics but there was a faint metal click when the redhead picked it up, his eyes were a cold, bluer purple, never leaving the door frame.

Least to say that when it was Kaoru's pretty face he saw when the door was finally pulled open, Kenshin was surprised beyond speech. He just gaped at her like a fish for at least ten long seconds, than remembered the bundle he had in his hands and felt a cold sweat sliding down his nape. Was there a logic way to explain the presence of what he was holding in the office of a high school teacher?

The girl just stared back at him for a while, blinking a couple of times. He looked surprised in a very strange way. As if Kenshin had expected someone to lump at his throat. Long years of kendo training taught her how to read people by their body language. Her father always told her that the attitude somebody would take toward you always spoke louder and truer then their words, and right now, Kenshin looked just about ready to defend his life. It was… unsettling.

"Kaoru…" he said sounding confused and surprised. "What are you doing here?"

She fidgeted, realising that, just as him, she should have been home for a while. "Detention's over and I didn't want to go home just yet so I thought I'd take a look around… you know."

The young teacher let out a sigh and tucked the bundle back into his drawer. "Teacher's room is a forbidden area for students, even after class."

Kaoru frowned slightly. "I didn't know it was here."

With a faint smile, he quirked an eyebrow at her, "So you haven't noticed by the look?"

She blushed and closed the door. "I got curious, thought I'd check it out a bit." She said looking around to find a chair to sit on. "Besides, I thought you went back home."

Kenshin laid back in his armchair and closed the drawer with his foot. "Believe it or not, this is almost like my second home."

"So you sleep here often?"

The young man shrugged. "It depends on the point of view."

She gave him a look and then pointed toward his computer. "You were doing something?"

He tensed, eyes once again clear purple were shying away from hers. Kaoru started to feel suspicious. "You don't want to tell me?"

He looked at her for a brief moment and sighed. "Something the principle told me about made me curious. I don't have a computer at home so I thought I'd use the one down here at the office, that I did."

She eyed him for a second but decided not to push.

"Anyway, shouldn't you be home? Your aunts will worry if you don't get there soon, that they would."

A nerve on the young woman's forehead seemed to pulse for a blink of a moment. Kaoru bit her lip and crossed her arms. "I'm not much in a hurry."

"Kaoru, they mean good, that they do." He said, leaning back up over the desk, drawing a bit closer.

"I'm not so sure about that."

Kenshin shook his head and rose up. "In any case, I don't want to be in trouble. Tae is way too scary to get any deeper into her bad side as I am already, that she is." he said under a pleasant tone.

Kaoru uncrossed her arms and pleaded sounding almost like a little girl who wanted a candy. "Please, I haven't been with you for a long time."

The teacher frowned. "Now you're starting to sound like a baby."

She showed him her tongue and turned around in a mockingly pout. She could hear him tap his foot and his gentle eyes boring into her back. Defeated, she got up, slowly, and walked to the door.

"Alright, but you give me a ride back home."

Smiling, the redhead shook his head and picked up his keys before walking over to the door and opening it for her.

"Right after you, precious." He said with a small bow.

She giggled slightly and walked out, Kenshin in tail.

"Can we make a quick stop at your place?" she asked over her shoulder, her tone of voice clearly teasing.

"Do you really want me to answer that?"

"Ok, but you'll tell me why you have a middle length Japanese saber hidden in you desk then." She said almost flippantly, "No, wait, maybe I don't really want you to answer to that as well."

Kenshin stared at her back as she walked down the corridor. So she did notice it after all, and there he thought he had covered it up smoothly. In the end, he _will_ have to tell her the truth about certain things. Still, it was not as if he were the only one hiding things in this relationship. Kaoru looked back at him just as she was about to turned into the lounge area.

"What are you waiting for? I'm already late for dinner as it is." She beckoned.

Eventually, they will have to talk about those things, but for right now, let's just enjoy this ignorance for a little bit longer.

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**_I had this chapter written and waiting on paper and when I finally got my hands a working (mostly) computer, I still had to get my old data from the dead computer. It took me so long, and I was working at some very stressful place and barely had enough time for myself. Then other stuff happen – you know, life and stuff, heh—and it took even longer for me to get back at this. So, this chapter is the last in-between chapter. From this point on, the story is going straight toward the end. I basically got all of my character about where I want them to be so I'd say it's really almost over with this one. There should not be anymore delays since I got mostly all I want in mind, maybe a few months more but I'll try real hard to finish this before I start anything else (and believe me, I have a couple of stories in waiting). So again, everybody, so sorry about this long wait. I know it's not the first time but I surely hope it is the last. Thank you for baring with it and to keep reading this story of mine. _**

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******_Eden's Epitaph_**


	20. Hiding Nomore

**Warning: Sexual content. **

**_Honeysuckles and Moonlight Shreds _**

_By Eden's Epitaph _

Chapter 19: _Hiding Nomore _

The precise moment Kaoru pushed the apartment open, just bare minutes after Kenshin had drop her off after telling her how important it was she followed her aunts rules -- the young woman even refrained from kissing him --, Tae found the way to shatter what little sense of serenity the girl had regained.

"I can't believe you got yourself into detention again, young lady." She just about shouted, looking akin to a furious mother bear.

Kaoru felt her own anger flare but fought her temper none the less carrying on the same mantra '_violence will serve nothing'_ over and over again. "I'm sorry, it won't happen again."

Tae tapped her foot, arms crossed. "That is what you said last time."

The girl frowned. "It's not like I actually hit her."

The woman looked infuriated. "This won't go without consequences, and can you explain why you are so late? It's 7:30, for crying out loud, the sun has set and you just walked in." Her tone was harsh and full of reprimand. "Must I remind you, Kaoru; you are supposed to return home right after school, are you not?"

Kaoru growled under her breath, temper getting stronger and resolve struggling weakly. "I got sick of staying here all day. I took the liberty to give my school a look around. Never got to do it for the last three months I spent here, it's about time I do."

The older woman gave her a hard look, the kind that would send shivers down her spine had Kaoru not been boiling inside.

"You were with Kenshin, were you not?"

The blue-eyed girl took off her shoes and removed her back-pack, chewing on the inside of her cheek with a grudge. "I wasn't expecting to find him, he just drove me back home and gave me just about the same speech about being late." she said walking by what looked much more like an epitome of angered authority than her aunt Tae.

"Has anybody seen you? What did you do? You kept your clothes on, right? Surely you did not do _that_ at school. Or maybe the both of you went to his apartment."

That did it. There was only so much a teenager could hold in before she would explode and this series of assuming, mistrustful questions just gave Kaoru the last, fatal strike and Kaoru's calm shattered.

"How can you!?" she seethed, furious beyond measures. "How can you dare assume such horrible things about me? I would never, _ever_, dare to have_ sex_ with Kenshin at school, nor would he take me to his apartment without _your_ consent. How can you think so low of him… of me?" Her blue eyes were anger darkened and Tae was starting to feel very small under her fuming gaze. "You sound every bit as much as the rumours some snotty girl started at school because of a stupid poetry contest she lost to me. I can expect that from the likes of her but from my very own aunt…"

Kaoru glared at her, the resentment she felt seeping out of those usually warm seas of hers. Now they were a storm lashing her anger on an unfortunate coast. She had always looked up to them and in return, they had always been proud of her. And then abruptly, all that trust was gone out the window because she fell in love with her teacher -- not mentioning sleeping with the redhead.

"Kaoru… I-" she started to mutter but the girl never let her finish.

"Shut up! I don't want excuses or anything. I thought you trusted me. Yes, I can do some stupid things but that doesn't mean I don't learn from them. What do you think I am, some stupid bimbo who's gonna get pregnant at 17 from a guy 11 years older then her! Married on top of that!" There were enraged tears gathering by the rim of her eyes and by the end she was nearly shouting.

Sae was floored, eardrums ringing, her always smiling eyes turned upside down, hurt and she wasn't so far from bursting into tears herself. She was covering up a gapping mouth with her right hand, aghast, the other one firmly gripping a plate she had been holding to her chest. Her little Kaoru, her little baby was hurt and she couldn't imagine how to even begin to help her. All her life, things had been more like a walk in the park compared to what the young woman had gone through after only seventeen years. And this helplessness felt every bit as painful as it seemed to be for her niece. Tae was speechless ever since the girl ordered her to stop talking. Shock was written all over her face and guilt was chewing down her stomach.

Although she was mortified, the older woman tried to calm the younger one and moved to touch her arm. Kaoru pulled away swiftly, as if the mere approach had burned more than a heated oven element.

"Go away." She nearly spitted with a wet glare. "Just let me be! I'm through with your bullshit, Tae. With this whole pile of bullshit they call the safest place in Japan!"

With that said, she walked right past her petrified aunts, straight into her bedroom slamming the door shut, hard and loud. It must have echoed all over the edifice, Sae jolted in surprise and some hanging pictures on the wall shook on their hanger. The twins looked at each other, still emotionally unbalanced by Kaoru's violent outburst. Unable to contain it much longer, Sae finally released the gate of her tears with a series of waterlogged hic-hops.

"Oh dear…" muttered Tae, warping her arms around her weeping sister. "What have I done?"

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Within the seclusion offered by the four walls of her bedroom, Kaoru wasn't fairing much better then her aunt Sae. Sprawled on her bed, hugging the pillow, she purred out all the frustration, all the anger, all the resentment caused by months worth of life shattering experiments. How she yearned to be elsewhere, anywhere but here in this madness of a mess! She couldn't bare the pressure any longer, it was too much at the same time, there was not even enough room left to think. Scary guys, father's death, new school, no friend, horrible rumours, bullies, Kenshin, she didn't know where to turn to anymore, it was as if the whole world had turned upside down. Hadn't the past given her enough hardships already? All Kaoru really wanted was a bit of happiness.

Slowly rolling on her back, Kaoru tried to gain back some control over her raging emotions. Down the corridor, she could hear her aunts' quiet murmurs, a mere hush could reach her ears and she couldn't make out any coherent words. The blue-eyed girl wasn't sure, but she could very well imagine them discussing about her, most probably worried about her health -- and surely it wasn't her physical health. With her earlier imitation of a waking Fuji-san, who wouldn't question it? The girl sighed heavily, something she did way too often these days. Soon enough, they will be trying to find her some sort of psychiatrist. Now that was promising endless fun of therapy and whatnot. Her eyes strained from the ceiling to the window right besides the bed. There were few stars she could see pinned to the night sky and they seemed distant, cold and faint, slowly disappearing under gathering clouds. They were dark and thick, spreading across the heaven like an ill omen, swallowing even the moon.

Nature always found her way to accommodate Kaoru's fullest moods.

Soon after, wind picked up, slowly, and time passed by. From the corner of her eyes, Kaoru could see the clock slowly advancing a second at the time, a minute at the time, an hour at the time. She just stared out the window, watching the wind through the leaves and other light objects it was carrying about within its whirlwinds. The young woman was just blank to anything else, mind not really thinking, not quite awake, but not sleeping either although she felt tired. So tired it burned her eyes red, yet, too many thoughts colliding to rest.

Time passed, her aunts distant chatter hushed down, replaced by the empty whisper of the television. It sounded like the news but she couldn't quite make it out. She never liked the news anyway, too boring, too repetitive and over reactive, just like Tae ever since she learned about Kenshin.

The wind shook the window roughly. They would waver soundly with every gust and sometimes when it grew fiercer, it howled morosely, like an old ghoul locked away in a box. Meanwhile, on the clock, the small needle kept its slow course around the quadrant. The sky kept covering up, heavy with rain, the night darker, the faint streetlight struggling to maintain its weak glimmer.

Then the television was turned off and her aunts padded down the corridor to their respective bedrooms. One after the other, the twins passed Kaoru's silent room, paused by the door, hesitated for a moment before walking off. Good, Kaoru did not feel like speaking with either of them. Clouded as she was, it was not the time to deal with even the smallest attempt at reconciliation, at least not yet. Everything became quiet, except for the window and time that continued to flow by, ticking away, blissfully oblivious of humans and their pity emotions. What good did they do anyway, those emotions? Besides leaving you with a leaden heart and in a broken state, not much good it seemed. Then again, they felt so much better then this cold worthless depression that swarmed her quietly.

Love was a good thing, she thought… but complicated.

It was around midnight, just about three hours after Sae and Tae had gone to bed, when Kaoru felt the desperate need to go away. Not for good, mind you, just for now. She needed to be outside, shaken by the wind and spiked by the rain that would soon fall, there was no doubt. She needed to feel something else then this latent atmosphere compressing her bedroom. Those walls were the only thing she saw as of late, she wanted a change of air. Grabbing a pair of sport shoes -- one learns that pranks do not exclude shoe lockers in high school and that a lock is nothing for agile fingers --, her old rubber duck coloured raincoat out of the wardrobe and changing from school uniform to a pair of sweat pants and a plain cotton t-shirt, the young woman sneaked out of the bedroom, down the corridor and out of the apartment without a sound.

She never thought sneaking around with Misao when they were kids would actually pay off someday.

Outside the wind was whipping and surprisingly chilly for a summer night. It made her hold her breath as the cold bite of the air snuck under her raincoat and into her t-shirt. Strangely enough, it wasn't as much painful as she would have thought. It felt more like a touch of nature and it made her feel very alive. Her heart lifted slightly and she started to walk. It was so dark outside, the glow of the streetlights seemed to weaken, yet Kaoru could see enough to go around. She knew should be afraid, all alone in the night with her rather unusual situation but strangely enough she never felt so free, it was exhilarating. No worries, no problem, just the wind, the clouds and the maze of streets.

Kaoru just followed her feet wherever they went, turning corners after corners, the strong, cold blustery weather lashing her hair about, slashing even her face, the stroke brightening her cheeks red. She had long since forgotten where she was when heavens finally broke out and icy droplets of water collided with her body, the raincoat not protecting much of her clothes. Soon, the t-shirt had soaked up enough water around the neck to reach under her arms, her sweat pants were damp and she could not care less. If she was to catch her death, it would save a lot of trouble for a lot of people, so why even bother to worry about health right now?

For a couple of hours she walked, meeting no one, not even feeling so much of a presence behind her back. The elements had yet to calm down and Kaoru had absolutely no idea where she was. The neighbourhood seemed somehow familiar but she just couldn't pin point when or why she ever came here. In the dark, with long, wet black hair in your face and after wondering about aimlessly under a cold storm it was difficult to find landmarks. It was calm here, though. Because the storm was so strong and the rain so cold, not a soul had dared defy them besides Kaoru.

At least, her feet did not take her downtown where she would surely met more than a little trouble, especially in her kind of clothing.

All was still, not a light was on, not even a streetlight, and it felt almost eerie. Then, at the end of the road, under the veil of falling rain, a car appeared, spotlight bright, almost blinding her. The young woman lifted her hand to shield her abused eyes, so use they were to the dark after her long walk. The driver had a manoeuvre of surprise and hit the break hastily, although he was still at a good 60 meters away from her. Kaoru stopped mid-step and stood still, her hand still covering her eyes, waiting for something to happen. The wind was howling and the rain falling harsh and soundly, still she could hear the engine still running under the cacophony of the elements. Nothing happened, and Kaoru's heart was beating fast, fear suddenly awakening as well as reason and conscience who were both running on overdrive as soon as they went back into function.

What if the driver was some sort of pervert… or even worse, a mad serial killer! Then again, there were not a lot of mad serial killers here in Kyoto, perverts though; they were all over the world.

Finally, the driver lowered the intensity of his spotlight and opened the door to step outside.

"What in hell are you doing here!?" asked a very worried, very familiar voice.

Kaoru blinked, this couldn't be possible, and it would be too large a coincidence, as if god all mighty planed this encounter. There, beside his old, rusted brown car was Writing and Literature teacher Himura Kenshin. No mistaking when she spotted the bright, red hair.

"Kaoru, are you crazy?" He asked drawing closer. "It's freezing cold, storming and raining and look at yourself, your dripping."

The young woman looked at him as if he was speaking an unknown language, mouth slightly agape. How in god's name did she came here, at this time, and he, of all people on this earth, was here. The young man came closer, his purple eyes betraying his anxious concern.

"Are you hurt? Did something happen?"

She just stood there, staring at him blankly, her bafflement stripping her of speaking abilities.

"Kaoru…" He murmured worriedly.

The young man met with her and reached out to caress a cold reddened cheek. His touch was soft and careful, like one would to tame a scared animal, and his voice soothing. She gazed into his calm, violet eyes, they spoke only of worry, care and love for her. Somehow, they crushed through her midnight fantasy and Kaoru returned to reality. With a trembling hand, the young woman her wet locks behind her ear.

"I'm cold," she admitted in a strangled whisper, lowering her head and arm.

Unknown to her, Kenshin smiled softly, relieved to know that, at least, she was alright enough to speak. Gently, he grabbed her hand and tugged her toward his car. She followed without any protest, watching him move. The young woman couldn't tell if she was happy to see him or not. Her heart still felt numb, so were her fingers but somehow it was comforting to just see him there, right now. After all, she loved this man, very much and she trusted him, and he trusted her. What more did she need?

"I'm taking you back home."

Kaoru froze dead in her track tugging her lover back. Startled, he stumbled a little and turned a stunned expression to a now stone-still girl.

"No!" she blurred out. "Not there, not now."

Kenshin blinked in confusion, the rain starting to find its way through his clothes as well.

"Why not?" he asked, perplex.

"Please, it's not childish. If I go back there I'll go crazy."

The redhead gave her a short overall from head to toe and toe to head. Wet, dripping, shivering his student was a mess. Her lips were blue but her cheeks were red, he could not help but wonder just how long she had spent under the rain. He frowned, knowing very well he was about to regret this, just as the other times before. Tae, for sure, would have him imprisoned and castrated for this.

"Alright," he said, giving in. "We're just in front of my building anyway." He added pointing toward the edifice on the other side of the road. "Just let me go and park my car ok? Wait for me by the front door."

She just nodded, shocked to realise her stroll actually led her to this place of all. Chance meeting with Kenshin tonight was not enough it seemed.

Kenshin turned back to his car while she ran for the shelter offered by the front door. Soon after, he joined her showed her in.

"We first need to get you out of those wet clothes." He said, reaching for her hand again, his grip gentle and warm.

He walked her into the apartment and helped her out of the dripping raincoat then went straight for the towel closet, retrieving a large, downy terry clothe. Kaoru slid out of her shoes and joined him by the closet. With great care Kenshin warped the large towel around her shivering frame and started to rub, trying to draw some heat back into her skin. The young man secured the cloth over his lover's small body and turned to the bedroom.

"Come," he instructed gently.

Pulling the door open, he tried to turn the lights on but nothing happened. He tried again a couple of times, as if it would work better with a little push, before pushing the air out of his nose in frustration.

"Damn," he cursed, that was just his luck.

"That explains the street lights," muttered Kaoru.

The young teacher frowned. "I had hoped the power shortage wouldn't have reached up to here," he groaned walking in the general direction of the dresser.

It was almost pitch black within the blue walls of the master bedroom; Kaoru could barely see the redhead. On the back wall, the large window with its curtains pulled back showed only a glimpse of the storm outside. Here, the glass was not shaken by the wind, only the pitter-patter of the rain drops and nothing more. It was relaxing, although she was not supposed to be here, the young woman felt secure and safe in this calm home. There was some rustle and Kenshin pulled a drawer open, then some fabric was moved about before he bushed the drawer close and turned back to her.

Under the dim light, she seemed paler then usual, akin to a ghost, as if she were only some fibber of his imagination. But she was real, and shivering. He reached for an overture in front of the towel and grabbed her sweat pants then tugged them off. Ocean gems widened in surprise but did not protest, simply stepped out of the wet garment allowing him to fully remove then from her freezing body.

"Let's just start by getting you out of those wet clothes, shall we," he said.

Gently, Kenshin pealed the towel off her shoulders. The half-drenched t-shirt clung to her well formed curves and he felt his desire stir. It felt as if eternity was spent since the last time he had the chance to just kiss her. Shrugging the thought off and forcing his priority back into place, the teacher got rid of the soaked cotton and it fell on the floor next to the discarded pants, heavy, wet and useless. Kaoru blushed, darkening the hue of her already red cheeks and Kenshin had trouble pulling his eyes away from her erected nipples. In a vain attempt to avoid temptation, the redhead picked up the towel and warped it back around her, covering her lovely, naked body. Now was not the time for fantasy, besides, he had made a promise.

One that was very hard to keep.

Why was she so temptingly lovely when completely wet? It was that image which first caught his attention, and it was that same image that made him fall further, and still to those long locks that turned into such a deep, ink color when watered. This time again, found in the middle of a storm, now naked in his bedroom, hair dripping on the floor, a small puddle at her feet, shivering but still standing proud, there was his Kaoru. It would have made him smile if he was not so damn worried.

"Do you think you're going to be alright?" he asked.

"I think so," she said, nodding.

Her lips were starting to gain back some color but he feared she might wake up with a soar throat and a stuffy nose in the morning. The young man grabbed the piece of garment he had earlier retrieved. It was a long sleeved t-shirt that would cover the girl down the mid thigh is she worn it.

"Can you give me the towel, please?" He asked, offering the shirt in exchange.

Kaoru pulled it over her head and handed back the towel. With a word of thanks, Kenshin took it from her fingers and gently made her turn around. He pulled her long, inky hair out of the neck and started to soak out the excess of water. Carefully, he dried her silky tresses as much as possible, until the towel had absorbed its load of liquid. He then braided it with surprising dexterity using the band holding his hair to fasten it, lacking another one – they were most likely in the bathroom but with the power out and the darkness in there were no warranty to find one elastic band before sunrise.

"Kenshin…" she muttered just as he finished. "I have enough…"

The low tone of her soft voice tugged painfully at his heart. She sounded weary, withered, almost broken. What could have possibly happened to get her out alone in a cold storm wearing nothing more then cotton clothing and a lousy yellow raincoat? How long had she been wandering about like that? She never said she wasn't hurt, although moments ago he had seen her naked form and not a scratch or a bruise seemed to have been marring her skin. Not that he could have seen much anything under the veil of darkness this lack of electricity caused.

"What do you mean?" he questioned, his wavering tone betraying his concern.

"I love you." She whispered and it got him confused.

He knew that already, he told her just as much before as he did once again now but he felt somewhat even more worried.

"Kaoru, please, tell me what happened."

She shook her head. "Not now," she begged. "I promise, later… just not now."

Kenshin grabbed the young woman by her small shoulders and gently turned her around to stare right into her sparkling blue eyes. They looked slightly duller than usual, but the bright twinkling he had always found in there was still safe, just fainter.

"I don't like seeing you like this. I don't like not knowing why either." His words made her frown but he did not stop there. "Although I wish I knew what was going on... I trust you, Kaoru."

And she smiled, just like that, just because he said he trusted her. It surprised him and even more when she reached up and pressed her warming lips to his own. He did not expect to react as he did either. Instead of pulling back as he should have he dove in, enthusiastic almost, savouring the moment, even warping his arms around her barely clad body. The shirt was large but the fabric thin and he could feel the soft contour of her round breast pressed to his chest and the flavour of her mouth was intoxicating, he couldn't get enough.

"Kaoru," he muttered over her soft lips and all she did was draw in a deep breath.

Her hands slid around his ribs before they gripped his shirt. The young woman could easily remember how it felt to have his strong body pressed against hers and right now, it was all she wanted. His hot breath over hers, his warm body touching her cold one, she could live with just that and nothing more. Kaoru deepened the kiss, her tongue eagerly diving into his mouth and she heard him groan. Soon his hands were around her face, gently caressing her soft, slowly warming skin. They were warped in a carefree cloud until she managed to tug his shirt free, her fingers, almost icy, found his stomach and he hissed, surprised by the contrast.

"Kaoru," he repeated once more, "I don't think it's a good idea, that I don't."

The redhead had almost sounded pleading. Holding her chin in his right hand he tried desperately to look into her blue eyes. She met his gaze and Kenshin could find nothing else but love, longing and need. Right now, in her eyes, was the glimmer of a woman desiring nothing but him but far in the back, he could still see the shadow that fainted her light.

"What happened?" he asked again.

He saw the girl frown her eyebrows furring and a tinge of annoyance. He tried to persuade her with a soft kiss on the corner of her mouth but she seemed to hold firm, her hands now spread wide over his sides and sliding up his back.

"I don't want to talk about it now." she said, escaping the gentle grip of his fingers to plant wet kisses on his shoulder, near the neck.

Her tricky hands slid down his sides on the tip of their fingers, slowly, waking tingling sensations. Kenshin wanted her just as much as she did, for days now he had dreamed of her embrace but the conditions under which he found her held a firm grip over the fastening of his restrains. Kaoru nipped and sucked his skin, the redhead was melting under such sweet torture. Still, it was only the beginning of her devilish treatment. Soon, her fingers had dove into his pants, swiftly unfastening the button to grant her hands more manoeuvrable space. With surprising confidence, she caressed the growing hardness she found within his boxers. With only the tip of her delicate digits, over the cotton fabric of his underwear, her mouth still lavishing around his neck, slowly she ripped his mind away.

He moaned her name, head lulling left and right, back and forth to finally find rest on her shoulder where he took a deep, intoxicating breath. His hands had already surrendered and were gently gripping her soft hips at the rhythm of the pleasurable waves she cleverly induced. Kenshin was melting and there was nothing that he wanted more than to just surrender and just give into her tempting demand, but it just didn't feel right. Not when she ran away from home in the middle of the night without giving so much of a reason.

"I trust you," she breathed just over his ear, her hand squeezing gently as she felt him swell and he caught his breath. "I'll tell you everything you want to know, just give me this one thing I ask before I explode."

There was a tremor in her soft, hushed voice that got him shivering with boiling desire. Did she knew she could do that? Even if she did, it changed nothing, her expression of burning need worked like dynamite cracking a hard rock. Kenshin forgot his worries, no longer able to hold on, his crave now undeniable.

"Oh Kaoru," he muttered, firmly grabbing her round rear. "I want you," he whispered coarsely, a finger already diving between her legs, pulling her panties away, searching for the pleasure spot. "I love you."

She moaned hotly, so close to his eardrums. Kenshin's fingers were working magic, already shaping a wonderful heat where he touched her.

"I need you." she whimpered quietly.

Kaoru pulled her head back, exposing her throat to his hungry kisses. The shirt was done with swiftly, joining the pile of wet clothes by the bedroom door. She was heaving every shudder of pleasure that rose from Kenshin's talented touch, moaning in sweat rapture. Still, she found enough mind to continue her languorous caress on his nearly full grown erection. Lips tracing down to her exposed breast, the redhead coaxed his lover tenderly toward the bed, one febrile step at a time, shredding his pants and the girl's white panties on the way.

The back of her knees hit the mattress first and she yelped, the sound distorted by her pleasure. Carefully, tracing her generous curves as he did so, Kenshin sat her down at the foot of the bed. He nipped one of her rosy nipple for a moment, savouring her hushed whimpers, middle finger still working on her core. Her skin had finally warmed up and he noticed she had started to sweat when he pulled back from her chest to steal a glimpse at her naked glory. She gave him a longing look before moaning, letting go of his manhood to use her arms as leverage to support her weakening body. The pleasure lashing at her from her sex was starting to draw her strength away. Kaoru rolled her head back, her long bread sliding heavily down her shoulder, her ocean pearls, drunk with desire still looking at him under her lashes.

Kissing her lips with scorching passion, Kenshin spread her thighs, his finger now circling around her entry. The young woman reached up with her right hand, still needing the left one to keep her balance, and drove her fingers into his soft hair and they remained there even when his head started to travel down her throat. He left a burning trace wherever his warm lips landed. First her slender neck, then her chest, licking and nipping nipples and breasts regardless. At this point, the young teacher was thrusting his finger in and out of her. She was moaning and completely opened to him, craving his touch, muttering his name every once in a while.

"So beautiful…" he murmured against the skin of her belly.

He knelt down, spreading her things wider apart and finally slipped the point of his tongue over her pink, erected bud, his finger still thrusting at a slow but paced rhythm. Kaoru cried out his name, gripped his head with both hands and fell back on the mattress and bounced a little, moaning. She moved her hips in sink with his strokes, the heat evolving into a flare. She was so close, her insides already clenching around his finger.

Just as her orgasm was about to burst, he pulled away, crawling on the bed on top of her, still clad in boxer briefs, a dress-shirt and a tie, red hair untie and messy after their encounter with her hands. He had a smug look on his face while she gave him a puzzled one. She couldn't understand why Kenshin had moved away when she had been so close. Not leaving room to even begin to form a protest, he once again captured her lips. Kaoru could taste the result of her arousal on his mouth and tongue. It felt strange but not particularly unpleasant. His hands started to quest about her body once more as he deepened the kiss. Kaoru's lost rapture was turning into a flitting memory.

He had her trapped between his legs, and the redhead explored her mouth at leisure, tongue clashing with her hungry one. He massaged her breasts, pinching the hard pikes every now and then, his kisses hot and searing. Kaoru responded to his every touch, returning every kisses with the same blistering passion. Her hands under his shirt, rubbing and scratching his back, dove under his boxers to grab his firm rear. Her memories of the day were long gone, there was just him and the pleasure he gave her right now and the calm darkness of his bedroom, disturbed every now and then by groans and moans. It was a sensation not unlike the one she had when the cold wind snuck under her t-shirt earlier that night, but it was just as vivifying, if not more.

Truly, surrendered to his knowing touch, Kaoru felt alive.

It did not take long before the red-headed man reached for her sex again, this time plunging two fingers inside as he bit on a hardened nipple. Kaoru curved her back automatically, in pure animal reaction, moaning his name in a low, urging plea that sent shivers down his spine. Kenshin wanted, needed to make her his again just as much as she did but he also wanted to give her so much pleasure. His personal needs were to be pushed back for a while.

So he kept pleasuring her, caressing her body long and wide, rediscovering her, again and again. Kaoru was sweating and writhing on the dishevelled bed. In her rapture, the young woman had tugged the sheets and pushed the pillow. The comforter laid on the floor, nearby the long forgotten soggy towel.

"Kenshin…" she pleaded softly, now drugged with lust.

Kissing her chest, the young man pulled the knot of his tie, slowly, leisurely, before discarding it over his shoulder, careless. He gave her pleasure nub a few strokes and sucked on her lip, loving every little sound she made, how she writhed and stirred under his touch. The echo of her delight nourished his own, fed his desire better then any of her caresses. Sucking under her right breast, Kenshin unbutton his shirt and it soon joined the rest of his clothes. Then his lips travelled down once more to tend to her throbbing center. She cried, spreading her legs and arching her hips to his mouth.

"Kaoru…" he breathed, his face between her thighs.

At first she did not look up but he persisted. "Kaoru… the drawer."

"Huhm?" She moaned and forced her eyes open to look down into his bright amethysts, they were gleaming mischievously.

"In the drawer," he said rubbing his chin the very sensitive spot at her apex, drawing out a howling moan from her parted lips, he almost chuckled. "I will need a condom."

Kaoru felt confused for a moment, why would he need a condom anyway? And there his tongue was, sliding irregularly over her pulsing bud and she so desperately wanted to come that any other thoughts were very hard to process at the moment.

"Wh-why?" she finally managed to question.

She heard him chuckle and felt it right on her core. Kaoru arched her back in desperate need, fingers firmly fisted around the bed-linens. The elastic band that held her braided hair had gone astray, her long tresses left undone sprawled over the sheets some tendrils sticking to her reddened cheeks. Her chest was heaving and her skin covered with a thin layer of pearling sweat, he could still taste the salty flavour of it on the back of his tongue. Kenshin pushed a finger inside her and his lover trembled longingly, moaning a soft _yes_ and he pulled it out just as soon.

"If you want me inside, I will need one, that I will." He said, his tone teasingly pleasant. "All you have to do, dearest, is reach for the drawer to your right and pull out the box, this one will take care of the rest." He assured her kissing her flower.

It sounded easy and under normal circumstances it would have been. However, every time she move to reached for the designated drawer, Kenshin would lick or suck where she felt it most, effectively distracting her and failing every attempts. After a fifth try, Kaoru moaned with mix pleasure and irritation.

"Screw it Kenshin!" She said, completely drunk with the need of him. "I want you inside, please."

Unable to resist her, he thrust two fingers into her. Kaoru rocked her hips, trying desperately to make him move but to her great demise he kept still.

"Kenshin!"

"Give me the box and I won't stop until you beg me to." He promised softly.

Appealed by the promise, Kaoru redoubled effort and even with her lover's torturous teasing, managed to pull the drawer open and grabbed the box of condom she found inside. No sooner did she drag it out that her red-headed lover was taking his boxers off with one hand, and opening the box with the other one. Just as eager to finally be one with her as his beloved was, Kenshin was protected and the tip of his hardness pressing at her entry. Neither could wait any longer and with one swift, sleek thrust he was sheeted and she was screaming his name.

Suckling on her soft, round breasts, the young man grabbed the underside of her left thigh and pushed it up, widening her opening allowing deeper and easier access. His left hand was holding the rest of his weight up above the moaning young woman, his legs much too occupied keeping up the rhythm he was trying to build with her. It didn't take long before she reached her pike, inner muscles tightening around his erection, bringing him very close to the edge but he held on until her grip loosen and her cries lessened.

Kaoru was breathing hard but a feeling of overwhelming bliss transported her groggy body on warm, vaporous clouds of bliss. Kenshin had stopped moving, still deep inside her and, as she realised after a moment, very hard. It brought her back down and she opened her sapphire eyes to look at him. His lids were tightly shut and she could see he was fighting hard within himself to remain unmoving as he was.

"Kenshin…?"

He cracked an eye open and smiled down gently at her, his purple eyes slightly glazed by desire but shining with love. He kissed her, softly but passionately, still needing her very much. Kaoru could feel his sex pulsing inside her and couldn't begin to understand why he wasn't still thrusting his way to heaven. She could taste his smouldering desire in his deepening kiss. What was he waiting for?

To her surprise, when he moved, it was to slide out of her.

"But you still haven't…" she protested.

He looked up into her eyes and they caught her in trance. Kaoru knew eyes had the ability to change color depending on emotion and feelings but his were simply amazing. Their usual amethyst had turned to a deep, dark yet glowing bluish purple that bore right into her soul, gaze full of love and burning passion. Looking right into her eyes, he started to rub her bud once more with his thumb, using his middle finger to stimulate her inside. She gasped and her eyes widened feeling her desire blazing anew and growing fast.

"Aah…!" she cried, rolling her head back, exposing her throat to his hungry mouth.

"Can you turn around?" he asked her after a short time.

She looked at him, perplex for a moment, blinking. Kaoru wasn't sure she was ok with the idea, but Kenshin smile tenderly and cupped her cheek before he kissed the tip of her nose.

"Trust me."

That's all he said, and that was all she needed. Although hesitantly, the young woman turned to lay on her stomach. The red-headed teacher repositioned himself, kneeling between her legs he started to spray a shower of breezy kisses down the smooth curve of her spinal cord and she relaxed almost instantly. Whatever little insecurity she had about his demand was gone and Kaoru sighed blissfully. He nipped and licked the silky skin he found there, sliding a hand under her stomach, he gently pulled her back side up. The position felt a little bit awkward but as soon as his agile fingers turned back to her nipples and sex, Kaoru forgot all about it.

His warm tongue slid up and down her back, sometimes driving away from the curving road of her spine to the fleshy softness of her sides where he sucked and nipped. She started to mewl gently; her hips even began to rock under his pleasurable ministration.

"Hum… Kenshin."

Kaoru wanted him again and the redhead felt much obliged, his need had still to be quenched. Still rubbing her pleasure nub, he penetrated her once more, very slowly. He gripped the left side of her hips and started to thrust in and out. Each time he drew in, Kaoru let out a louder moan and soon he no longer needed to guide her, she was meeting him trust for trust, pulling her thighs further apart of her own will, back curved in a graceful arch, completely enraptured by the feeling of him sliding so fittingly in and out of her. It literally stole her breath away.

His hand no longer able to keep up, muscles hurting a bit after all that rubbing, Kenshin just slid it up her torso to fondle her bouncing breast. His trusts gained in rapidity but remained tender. His breath was rasp and hot on the back of her neck. The teacher groaned and bit her nape which forced his name out of her mouth in a sweet, needy plead. This was nothing compared to the first two times they had made love. This was almost animal, it was raw and it was hot. It made her whole body tingle with arousal and sweating with pleasure. The effort was straining, her lungs were on fire, but the feeling was incredibly rewarding.

They were driving their way up to a crushing orgasm and she could feel it starting to build deep inside where they made one. Breathing hard, Kenshin pulled her up into a sitting position on his lap, his hard, erected sex deep inside her and riding his legs as she was, it felt even deeper if possible. Leaning back and helping her settle into an unwavering position, the redhead guided his lover into the next steps. Face buried into her hair, he gripped her hips and pulled her up then, letting out a low groan, pulled her down. Quick learner, Kaoru followed the movements, adding a rotation to her hips every once in a while.

The bed, which had kept silent for the most part, started to protest weakly under mating the lovers. The young woman's mewl turned into full blown moans, they mixed with his soft, rasp groans. Reclining some more and powering his trusts with his bent legs, Kenshin knew he could not hold it much longer. All he was waiting for was his beloved to lead the way to paradise and he would jump in right after her

"Kaoru…" he urged pleadingly.

"Kenshin… I… I… urgh, hum… Just a little bit m-more."

He too was sweating now, gasping from the effort, on the verge of ecstasy.

"I-aah! Ken-huum…"

Kaoru bit her lip pushing up and down, she was almost there. She was so close, she didn't even notice how hard she was thrusting down on his manhood, stretching her muscles to their limit but when she finally found her orgasm, it was all worth it. It pierced through her like a thunder stroke of pleasure, Kenshin right after her, his erection swelling large before he found release with a low moan into her ear. He roughly thrust into her a couple more times, hugging her close, before collapsing on top of her, out of breath, sweaty but thoroughly satisfied.

There were both completely exhausted. Lazily, Kenshin rolled off her, reached for a box of paper tissues on the small table besides the bed. He was so strained that even a small trip to the bathroom to get rid of the used condom was too much of a task so he simply warped it in a tissue and left it on the table thinking it best to just throw it in the toilette in the morning.

When he turned back to Kaoru, she was already fast asleep in the position he had left her barely seconds ago, sprawled on her stomach. His lids already feeling like a tone, the young teacher reached out for his sleeping lover, curled his arms around her small body to press his naked form to her smooth back. With the last of his strength, he grabbed a sheet and covered them up before succumbing to sleep.

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The storm had long since calmed down when Kenshin stirred but it was still very dark outside.

Moonlight played silvery shades upon the night darken teal color of the room's walls, casting shadows in a myriad of shapes and bluish-greys for the eye to observe in contemplative silence, paying much respect to the magnificence of night. Silky strands of midnight hair reflecting indigo were spread almost invisibly on the dark night-colored shade of the bed linens and summery sky hues of the bed-wide pillow. His hand, though trembling still, never seemed to tire of touching the velvet feel of the alabaster skin that glowed silvery under the bath of the moon. Her chest rose and fell, following a deep rhythm of relaxed breathing, lost in a sea of dreams he so wished to peer into. Her hands rested barely above her head, arm in a graceful arc, thick black lashes resting lovingly upon the delicate flesh of her rosy cheeks which he longed to graze with his burning lips. Only fear of waking her kept the man from succumbing into temptation, as sweet and lovable as it was. His finger grazed the smooth skin of her tender face, tracing the beautiful lines of her sleeping figure.

Amethyst pools stared lovingly at the sight of perfection sleeping with childish abandon on his dishevelled bed. Clothes rested discarded about the room, long forgotten in a hazed passion that had overthrown any thought of morality and promises shoved far away from a consciousness that begged hopelessly for some attention. It all just felt so right, too right to be as damn amiss as society saw it. To give into this sweet madness that had wrapped the both of them, leaving them breathless, completely overwhelmed, and it could not be wrong, no matter the odds.

If sins were so powerfully wonderful, than he craved to be a perpetual sinner, his soul be forever damned to the darkness of hell, he would still have those magical moments of rapture and love engraved deeply in his mind and soul to cherish in an eternity of hellish pain. Yes, he would abide to the Devil's every wish only to remain by this lovely woman's side, should it be in torture. She had captured him and he was unwilling to leave, a liable prey, ready for the ultimate sacrifice of his soul for the sake of her, of what they had.

He sought no redemption, not an ounce of guilt or reminiscence, simply a feeling of fulfillment he knew only she could give. She had brought out the best of him, saw what was beautiful in his gloom, loved him without a question, gave him full understanding and, above all, her trust. It occurred to him that never before had he felt anything quite this strong. Willing to give and not expecting anything in return and surprised when he gave back. He once thought he was in love, elusive feeling cast in shadow by some illusion of reality, had married that woman who could never love him, that he could never love.

He knew now, understood and saw as perfectly as if bathed in daylight, what had united two beings that, apparently hadn't and still wont, have anything in common but their mutual dread of loneliness, that had came along when their world had shattered under their powerless hands. It had took him ten years to realize how wrong he was, clinging to something that never even existed under a promise that had not even made any sense. This girl, latent by his side, lost in the loveliness of rest and reverie, was light. She was innocence and compassion, everything that his wife was not, everything that stirred his spirit toward life, everything he had unconsciously craved for so many years, so long he still had no idea when the need had birthed.

Absently, his hand drifted up her arm, caressing the soft flesh in a tender gesture, loving her with the pads of long fingers, watching intensely every subtle changes that would make her face lit up in the quiet obscurity of the bedroom. This beautiful woman was still so young, so inexperienced in life, yet experienced so much. Pain seemed to be a substantial part or her past and present as well as his and, still, she smiled through it all, head held high and confident. If any guilt should be felt, it was to bring her more worries, trouble and pain, to trap her between his past and his present and add yet more weight to her already heavy burden. And yet, he knew she would never crumble, he knew her to be strong, to be fiercely alive. But the eventuality that his love would be crushed hunted him, but the guilt he should feel seemed to have forgotten about him.

When he had watched her, swathed in the euphoric state that their infatuation had so exquisitely created, flushed and vibrant under him, responding to his every hushed murmur, stirring his every senses awake, touching places that he thought could never be touched, he knew she was meant to be his, and he to be hers. She was never cold, always smiling, a whirlwind of fiery emotion that would light her ocean blue eyes to such a perfect glitter of life that would make his existence worth the ache and suffering, their intensity so far from the livid coal of his wife's eyes. She expressed herself in so many different ways, shown him what life really was and brought light to a life that used to be nothing but grey shades.

He smiled genuinely only when with her it seemed. The future no longer appeared to be that long, everlasting tunnel that he had feared so much. Happiness was his to take, and it was laid within this lovely girl that slumbered peacefully, laying next to him in all her exquisite glory. Love was no longer that tearing feeling inside that left him empty and ensnared, but a blissful ecstasy that enveloped his soul, coxing him towards a greater tomorrow wrapped in sun and smelling of freshly hatched honeysuckles.

As a long finger played over her skin, gliding up and down the curves of her feminine attributes as if entranced by the soft glow of them, he began to wonder how it started. This madness, as beautiful as it was, had to have a beginning, everything had. He had not fallen into sin so easily, he remembered. Fighting want and lust and that overpowering need with all the might he could muster up, wishing it gone. It had tortured him, rendering him sleepless and agitated, angered him, maddened him, and it suddenly appeared to him that his struggle had been so vain. Kissing the hand he had gently taken hold of as his mind wandered back to that fateful rainy April day, on the skirts of the school campus, where he had first witnessed her beauty under the samurai's tree.

It felt so distant now, barely 4 months but they were akin to years.

But that was not when he fell in love with her. She was a very lovely girl in a drenched school uniform and it did appeal to his manly senses. Which strait man wouldn't? He felt attracted to her at first bet never so much as he was that day before summer vacation when he saw her under a different light for the first time.

Now that he thought about it, gentle eyes tracing the smooth curves of the woman sleeping beside him, that moment in the classroom had been the trigger to it all. Of course, he had always thought the girl unusual and charming before that day. However, the smile she showed him, the truth in her eyes, such sincerity and innocence so beautifully mixed, he simply could not resist. That very particular smile was what pulled him tumbling down a first time… or was it more like soaring through the sky?

He smiled, eyes shut and a hand lightly trailing across the moonlit bath skin of her delicate shoulder. Since that day, he was willing to do anything to just catch a glimpse of that expression if only once more on her pretty face. Shifting, his nose touched the young woman's nape buried under the long silken strands of ink and took a lungful of her appeasing and fresh fragrance. His hand encircled her waist, one hand flat on her belly caressing the soft flesh, the other gripping gently her side, pulling the young woman closer to him as he nuzzled her neck. He sighed in contentment, that smile he would see again, and again, a thousands time over.

Memories still flooding his mind, the red-haired man planted soft butterfly kisses in the sea of raven water that streamed down the girl's lovely head to spill in long curves across the mattress and pillow. That day had held some none so pleasant memories as well, but right now he didn't feel it was even worth the trouble of remembering. His mind traced back to summer break at the beach. Considering they were now in the middle of July, it wasn't so long ago. For Kaoru it had been something close to the worst vacation she ever had. Smiling fondly, Kenshin traced back to their little swords fight in the forest. The young woman had been surprisingly skilled.

And that was also when he first kissed her.

That too, he could never forget. How sweet her lips tasted even with the salty tears that had touched them. He never knew, even to this day, what came over him. It could have been the biggest mistake of his life. If anybody found him kissing his young student so deeply… he did not even dare to imagine the consequences. Then she ran away. When he found her later on, she had found yet another way to soak her clothes. What was with this girl and water anyway? After a short conversation he had teased her about missing the serving.

They had indeed missed the serving, he remembered. Finding something to eat had turned out… rather interesting. He chuckled, the mirth rumbling his chest, the vibration spreading into the soft body resting in his arms. His nose still buried in her hair, he felt her stir and sigh, taking a deep awakening breathe. She shifted lightly, feeling his arms warped around her torso in a tender embrace. She twisted her head, sleepy puddles of nocturne sky looking at him with slight curiosity.

He crooked an eyebrow, feigning ignorance, and deposed a feathery kiss on the back of her shoulder, his eyes never leaving hers. She frowned, now quite intrigued by his playful attitude. She tried to turn, feeling the muscles of her neck tiring of the effort of keeping it in such angle, but his hold tightened, crushing her to his chest, lovingly, and chuckled some more. She sighed, letting her head fall back on the pillow, staring at the darkness of the room for a moment before looking back at him, a bit of irritation disturbing the clam of her cerulean pools.

"Something you find funny?" She asked

"Maybe…"

"What does that mea... hin!"

He nipped the tender skin of her nape, causing the end her sentence to waver with a laughing yelp. She fought back the best she could when his talented fingers slid mischievously across her flesh. In retaliation, she tried to catch his evil hands only to get hers trapped instead. She was swipe, shift and turn; her hair blindfolded her, and she found herself arms above her head, wrists secured in a light but firm grip, defenseless under him.

Gentle digit brushed the black strands from her vision, purple orbs teasingly menacing. The young woman wrinkled her nose in childish protest and pouted. He laugh, scattering kisses across her face, causing her disapproving mask to weaver with barely concealed giggle.

"Thinking." He said.

She blinked, "Thinking? Of what?"

He smiled at her. "Dinner…"

She gave him a puzzled look. "You're hungry?"

He laughed and pressed his lips against hers, molding his smile on her. "Not quite…"

The woman frowned. "Why so mysterious?"

He gave her an innocent look. "I'm being mysterious?" Her frown deepened mockingly and he gave to that adorable expression. "I'm remembering a certain dinner…," he hinted. He could not completely give in.

She seemed not to understand, then her face illuminated and she laughed as well, remembering one of her strangest day. It had been full of contradicting emotions and opposing feelings starting from humiliation, anger, comfort, sadness and ending in humor. He smiled and laid his head on her chest, pulling the sheets back over their body. She turned her head, nestling it against his, remembering with a smile.

"You mean the eggshell omelets?"

Kenshin chuckled, "It really wasn't that bad."

"Right…"

"Say, Kenshin…?" She asked after a long moment of comfortable silence.

"Hum?" He was already half asleep, dozing off comfortably pressed to her breast, her hand gently stroked the crimson silk of his air, sometimes brushing the skin of his earlobe.

"You never told me why you fought so hard to keep Yahiko."

Her question got him to slightly raise his head and look into her deep ocean pools. She looked pensive with a hint of sleep still clinging to her lids. So adorable. How he loved her. The redheaded man smiled to his lover and kissed her chin before settling back on her chest. The sound of her heartbeat was soothing.

"Yahiko is a very precious little monster…" He said, and then felt a slight pull at his air. "Ow…"

"That's not an answer, mister."

He chuckled. "Why the sudden interest, dearest." He said, pleasantly.

Sweet words and pet names were, the dark haired woman discovered very early, reserved to playful chatter only. Still, every time he would call her dear, love and other some such, she could hear the deep affection he felt for her underline his gentle tone.

The mood seemed to change when she felt his hand glide softly down her side. It tickled her flesh but it was nothing more than a careful caring brush. He shifted his head, red hair spilling down each side of her ribcage. His purple eyes looked tired and darker than usual but still they shone, albeit faintly. He held her gaze with a serious intensity. The young woman frowned. Something was off and the loving playfulness they shared not a moment ago was gone.

"Kaoru…" he murmured his other hand reaching up to pull back an obstinate lock of hair behind her ear. "We will be in a lot of trouble you know." He said.

The girl closed her eyes and sighed. She knew exactly what he meant, but she also felt very reluctant to share what he wanted to know. He was not exactly transparent with her either and that particular point seemed to seal her lips. Not that the young woman had no faith in him, but he did not seem to have enough in her. When she opened her eyes, his face had moved to hover above hers. The young woman gave him a faint smile.

"I know…" She said.

He pressed his forehead to hers and sighed. "Why won't you tell me why…?"

So close to his beautiful eyes, their exotic color so akin to his soul, it was difficult for the girl to say anything. Lying was out of the picture, but telling the truth…Instead, she traced, again, the cross marks that slashed his left cheek with the pad of her index finger.

"Your secrets are dangerous, aren't they?"

The redheaded man pulled back, slightly, and frowned. "And yours?"

"Troublesome…"

Kenshin frowned. "If I'm not mistaken, you promised me to tell me everything I wanted '_later_', that you did."

Kaoru looked away, out the window into the now very still night. She did make that promise and the word of a Kamiya was a word of honour -- or so her father always told her. The young man was growing impatient and after a long minute of silence, she forced her gaze back to his.

"You don't trust me enough?" He said looking right into her blue eyes.

The girl shook her head. "No," she assured reaching out to touch his cheek. "I trust you with my life, Kenshin, I swear, I just…"

Her gaze became distant and she felt into another long silence. He could see in her eyes painful memories played back like an old silent movie. He covered her hand with his own, gently capturing her fingers to pull her palm over his mouth where he planted a kiss. Her focus turned back to him but her lips wouldn't move. Then, just as Kenshin though she would not speak again until morning, she opened her mouth and started to tell.

"It was… about five months ago but it all began about four years before that." She said with a heavy breath, eyes turning to the ceiling. "I told you my father was a policeman running undercover." She paused again, feeling the man at her side nod. "A little bit over five years ago, he was assigned to a small drug dealing gang that was starting to grow downtown Tokyo. All he had to do was get on their good side, gather information and keep his department aware them, the usual basically."

Kaoru sighed remembering all too well the long period of times when she would have no words from her father, the worry and the fear she felt for him. It had been his most important mission yet and because of that and the danger it was bound to bring along, Koshijiro was rarely ever home and communicated very little with his daughter.

"Dad was trying to go up the ladder as fast as possible and be able to meet with the 'boss' as he always referred to him. After a year and an half spent within the organization, he finally got his chance. So far, they had always acted discretely, all the proofs my father had piled over time were not strong enough to hold a courtroom until one day they turned to him about a very important cocaine and heroine transaction with some American businessman and they wanted him as the exchange man."

Her voice softened and her lips began to tremble. "It was a set up, but no one saw it coming. Turned out the organization didn't trust my father at all, nor did they trust the American guy so, I suppose it was to save some time, they sat a trap… There were no survivors left to tell much about what happened." She said heavily. "They found his body loaded with bullets in the bay about two weeks later."

Kenshin remained silent for a moment, processing all this information. Drug dealers? He didn't like the sound of that. Actually, he hated it. Then something came to mind.

"So… what do you have to do with all that?"

Kaoru had been dreading that question. "Three years after he got into the organization, my father's outside contact with the police station, an agent from a private corporation, was murdered under unclear circumstances. This is classified information but the government hires some corporations that act in the spying department, above many other things, and corporations are at the liberty to hire whoever they want. I had a classmate just about my age, Sato Soujiro, he was one such agent by the age of 8. A combat specialist with impressive kendo abilities and surprising intelligence. School was his best cover, he always said."

Kaoru turned silent once more, mind lost in the memory of her first crush, it carved a small smile on her face. "He came into our school not long after he was hired by his company and we became friend very fast, he, Misao and I. You know, you'd be surprised at how innocent he can look, smiling like a fool all the time." She paused, the teasing smile tugging firmer at the corner of her lips. "That reminds me someone else I know…"

She turned her blue eyes to him and Kenshin blinked.

"Oro?!"

The young woman giggled lightly. "Anyway, Sou-chan was never able to keep his secret hidden from cunning little Misao and I. In the end, he told us about as much as he could and that's when I got interested. I thought it would be a nice way to keep in contact with my father." Kaoru sighed, feeling foolish. "Soujiro told me, some years later, that his agency also trained everyone with enough talent to pass the qualification test. I couldn't resist and I signed in when I was 14 and surprisingly enough, passed the tests."

The girl shook her head. "I was admitted into the intelligence relay department and trained to be an outside contact for under cover agents. I wasn't planning on telling my father. He would never have agreed to it in the first place."

"And I don't blame him." Interrupted Kenshin.

Kaoru gave him a cross look then turned back to her story. "When my father's contact was murdered, he was assigned a new one. A contact's not supposed to know the identity of the agent they are covering, so when they gave me the job I didn't know it was him."

The blue-eyed girl took a deep breath. "I would receive the information he sent bit by bit through different mean, all of them coded and addressed to different locations and names. Mail, e-mail, text message, radio signal, anything to lead anyone a bit suspicious astray. All I had to do was relay the message under different codes to the corporation and they dealt with the police department. Nobody is supposed to meet with anyone."

Kaoru sighed, Kenshin's silence was making her nervous and she could feel his violet eyes closely observing her face. The girl closed eyes, it was painful remembering all this stuff. Not many were allowed to know so many details, her aunts were given the important details but nothing more.

"My father would come back from his mission every once in a while. Our dojo was his favourite place to hide during those times. You see, with his job being so dangerous, he thought that going back home while on an assignment was too risky for me, so he would sleep at the dojo, a couple of blocks from our house." A smile returned to her face as some pleasant memories resurfaced. "My grand-father used to live at the dojo too. It's an old, traditional dojo, you see, on the outskirt of Tokyo where some very small farms and old houses are still up. I used to spend my summer vacations there…"

That was where she learned kendo, so many found souvenirs tagged to a little patch of earth saved from the rapid expansion of the city since Japan's first step into _modernisation _-- or rather _westernisation_ with all the influence it had on them. Someday, maybe, she will be able to return there. The dojo had been transferred under her name after Koshijiro's death, after all. It should still be under good condition by that time, Jiya assured her someone was taking good care of it. Though he never mentioned just exactly who that was.

"Must have been a nice place." Murmured Kenshin.

Kaoru blinked and turn to stare at her lover. All that remembering had her lost in thought for a while, enough for the redhead to notice and attempt to pull her back to reality. The young woman nodded with a faint smile.

"It is…" she thought for a moment, trying to trace back her thought to the moment she had begun to trail off, without much result. "Where was I…?"

"Your father spent his off time at the dojo only, I believe." He offered.

Kaoru smirked. "Good for you, you were following." Looking back up at the ceiling, the young woman plunged back into her memories. "Dad wouldn't tell me much about his work until it was over but he would always give me an overall idea of what he was doing. All I knew, and that was bits I got from the short times he spent with me, was that he was doing small errands for a barman downtown, who also did into some drug resale, in the beginning then from the barman it was another one at another club, then he did some deliveries divers people until they were using him to deposit large amount of money in the first two years, then after his first contact was killed, the organization started to give him bigger jobs he never told me about."

She sighed, her voice reaching a soft murmur. "It didn't take me long after I got the job to understand that the information I was getting came from my very own father working under cover." She bit her lip, "Back then, I remember, I was so happy, I could really help my father in his work now. I felt closer to him and knowing the messages I got were from him and that I could contact him anytime, even though he didn't know it was me, was easing my worries. I relayed coded information for him for two years, every day. Then, one day, complete silence."

Her heart felt heavy and she took a wavering breath. "Then the next one, I received a large file in one of my e-mail boxes, a roll of negatives by mail added to a text message delivered the night of the operation." Kaoru marked another pause. "In training they tell you that when a lot of evidence shows up in a rush, it means your agent knew he hadn't much time left to live. So I knew he was dead before everyone else. I remember when the commissary came to my house to announce my father's 'brave death serving justice', I had to act as if I didn't know anything."

She thought of stopping her tale there but she knew Kenshin will want to know everything so with a deep sigh, she continued. "After he died, I left the corporation thinking it was best. It didn't take long, really, and they almost look happy to see me go, I must have looked awfully depressed. I thought I would never again have to deal with police stuff again but two days after the ceremony someone broke into my house. I was at Misao's, Jiya was trying to make arrangement with Tae and Sae to keep me in Tokyo at least until I had graduated… The thief found nothing but had looked everywhere. The police didn't make much of it but I was uneasy."

Shaking her head, Kaoru closed her eyes. "The same day I get a call from the security department of the corporation telling me there was a leek and I was in danger… and here I am now."

For a moment, Kenshin remained quiet, digesting the surprisingly large amount of information she just gave him. So this was her clouded, troublesome past. Then he wondered, why in Kyoto. It was a fairly large city, not very much unlike Tokyo, with dangerous spots and probably affiliates of those who were after her.

"Do you know why they hid you here?" He asked, breaking the silence.

She turned to him, "All they said was; '_We'll hide you in the safest place of Japan_.'"

It sounded odd, too odd to be just a mere coincidence. He had started to feel some doubts after his conversation with Katsura this afternoon and after some researching he did find something corroborating his suspicions, something he wondered if she was aware of.

"Kaoru," he asked, sitting up slightly. "Who are the people that hid you here?"

Her gaze flitted away from his and she bit her lip. "I um…"

"It wasn't the police since you said they didn't mind much, right?"

Kaoru nodded slightly and her lover frowned.

"And it wasn't the security department of your former agency." He probed some more and she confirmed silently. "It was Aoshi, wasn't it."

Her eyes widened. She turned a stunned expression to him and Kenshin didn't need much more to know he had been right.

He sat up, leaning against the bedpost, thinking. "Aoshi's not just a lawyer."

The young woman sighed. "Jiya's lawyer agency is also into spying…"

The teacher closed his eyes. "I thought so."

Everything was clear now. After Kaoru got threatened, Aoshi contacted Katsura and asked for his protection -- and by the principal's protection it surly meant Kenshin's. The tall man must have figured out the redhead's relationship with the retired politician. He stole a glance in his lover's direction. She was staring at the cross-shaped scare marring his left cheek with heavy-hooded eyes. He knew she was dying to ask and he knew soon he will have to tell her everything but right now, sleep seemed a better idea. He laid back down and reach out for her, pulling her small body to his and planting a kiss on top of her head.

"We should sleep for now, we'll talk more tomorrow."

He felt her nod and she snuggled closer with a sleepy sigh.

Kenshin stared at the ceiling long after Kaoru had succumbed into sleep, outside, down was breaking but inside, thoughts were colliding.

Tomorrow will be a harsh day…

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**_This chapter was actually very difficult to write. I wrote the first part in a rush, making quite a lot of spelling, typo and grammar mistakes on my way. So once the rush of inspiration I had to re-read everything then correct and then there was Kaoru's story. Believe it or not, I had planed this confession a long time ago. In case you didn't notice, all of the parts in italic in previous chapter were excerpts from this chapter. I must say though that Kaoru's past is a bit… well farfetched, at least to my point of view but hey, this is still a piece of fiction, although I want some realism (mostly in character development then in believable story details). Besides, I sort of like it that way and it does keep a bit of what the original story of Rurouni Kenshin is all about, a mysterious, unusual and mostly dangerous past. _**

**_Eden's Epitaph_**


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